


The Dream Team

by XinaV



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: AU, But not a gang, Dreamies are rich, Gen, Implied Deaths, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Kids of rich parents, Nothing explicit for both, Organized group
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-21
Updated: 2019-06-21
Packaged: 2020-05-15 18:42:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 71,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19301584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XinaV/pseuds/XinaV
Summary: The idea of family is too black and white. Sometimes, you have to make your own family. Especially when your own does nothing for you.Sometimes, you have to prove that you're better than them, even in the things they do.That's where your family—the one you chose and made—comes in.





	1. A team is made...

**Author's Note:**

> Originally started off as a one-shot but turned into this and I don't regret it at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has mentions of sexual assault. It's nothing graphic or explicit but just putting that warning out there.

They say the apple never falls far from the tree. Most children tend to have similar qualities of their parents, if not all children. But one cannot pick and choose which quality for their child to receive and sometimes, that can be a scary thing.

The case is no different when it comes to a certain set of teen boys.

Children of some of South Korea's most influential people who have their hands in a little bit of everything. They know their parents are doing a lot of illegal stuff and their businesses are just a nice cover up that happen to bring them money. But hey, who are they to complain? They can get almost anything they want as long as they mind their business—their parents are strongly against them being even remotely part of what they do, not because they care but because they want efficiency and having a teen in there is anything but—so why complain?

Right now, the three youngest of the group are together waiting while talking about everything they find wrong in the world—a normal day for them. It’s a clear day outside with perfect spring weather. Nothing seemed to be moving fast or slow, everything was paced and even so it made it a good day. 

They are waiting for their other four friends since the others are still doing whatever their parents planned for them that day. Being the kids of very successful and important people guarantees two things: one, your parents couldn’t care less about you, despite the occasional moments of affection they show, with the feeling becoming mutual after a few years of loneliness, and two, your parents will put you in useless activities to make them look better and keep you out of their way.

The three youngest already finished their mandatory activities for the day so they decided to wait for the others at Jaemin’s house, his house always being the emptiest since his parents didn’t believe in hiring servants but also didn’t seem to believe in being home most of the time—they’re the owners of multiple hospitals, slowly spreading out their reach; they don’t have time to be home apparently. It made his house the best place for them to hang out since there was no one to ever bother them or nag them. Today, they’re having a spontaneous sleepover at his house and since all of their parents work together in some convoluted way, there’s never any issue when it comes to hanging out with each other without premade plans—mainly because their parents know that having their kids together keeps the kids busy but also keeps an eye on the other in case a betrayal is being planned.

So now, due to the suddenness of the idea, they just have to wait for each other to finish with their activities. While as a group they would collectively say they’re not the best at waiting, they did learn how to keep themselves entertained and as long as there’s at least one friend then they’re fine waiting for the others. As they waited, they decided to do what they did best: gossip. 

“And then she went on to ask me for the millionth time since I’ve met her if I was feeling depressed and lonely because I’m here alone so often. Like lady, I’m not there to actually talk about the issues my mother thinks I have. I’m there to avoid having another phone call with my mother who can worry about me switching my hair color to something bright and unprofessional but not about my destroyed back,” Jaemin says, throwing a piece of popcorn into Jisung’s mouth successfully. 

They’re currently on the topic of the activities they just came from; Jaemin coming from therapy that is pointless to him, Chenle coming from English lessons that make him feel frustrated, and Jisung coming from dance class that he does not need. They’re all things their parents signed them up for but they go to keep as much of an angelic cover to fool their parents as they possibly can. 

“I don’t like your therapist, she’s too nosy and not in the good therapist kind of way. I once spoke in Chinese with Renjun in front of her while waiting for you and she wanted to know what we were saying, telling us that in this open space everyone should be able to understand each other. Renjun told her to screw off in Chinese and then politically in Korean,” Chenle says.

Those public speaking and business lessons Renjun’s parents make him take always seem to come in handy in all the situations his parents don’t want him to use them in.

“Yeah, she’s like that. No wonder she doesn’t ask as much about you guys anymore. And here I thought my lack of straight answers finally got through her thick skull. If I was an ignorant jerk who used stereotypes to define people, I would say that she should dye her hair blonde with how stupid she is,” Jaemin replies.

This gets the other two to laugh as they move on with their conversation as normal; Chenle being hyperactive and talkative, Jaemin complaining about people and humanity in general, and Jisung being more reserved as long as he is receiving some form of attention—said attention being Jaemin throwing popcorn into his mouth while his legs are draped across Chenle’s lap.

Eventually, Jeno is the next to arrive, coming from acting lessons that he also does not need, and taking his self proclaimed seat next to Jaemin as usual. The older is one who basks and thrives with attention. But he also likes affection during rare times, something Jaemin is always glad to give.

Soon after, Donghyuck comes from anger management class, something they still tease him about, and Renjun comes shortly after from a tech course. No one takes a long time to get comfortable, any place feeling like home to them as long as each other is there.

Now they’re just waiting for Mark. 

It is a bit strange that their eldest is taking so long, his Korean lessons are almost always over by 5:00. It’s currently 7:00 and they know it only takes about an hour for him to get here.

Mark’s parents, mainly his father, put him in Korean etiquette and history classes mainly because he’s Canadian. His parents own one of the biggest law firms and one of the best. That being said, the entire field is competitive and cutthroat. His father believes that as heir to their company, he should know everything involving their culture. It’s really so no one can say Mark is too western to be an heir to one of the largest Korean companies, especially if they know what his father and mother is really into. While Mark finds learning interesting, he always says it feels like the culture is getting forced down his throat each time he goes to class.

 _“If I hear one more person call me Minhyung today, I’m going to scream,”_ usually being the elder’s remark whenever he comes from the class.

“You guys think he’s alright? It’s pretty late now and he never stays that late,” Donghyuck says, always being the most observant one when it comes to Mark.

Despite undoubtedly being the most trouble making one of their group, Donghyuck is also one of the most affectionate and really cares for his friends, even if he denies it at times. It’s no surprise that he’s beginning to worry now about Mark being so late.

“He isn’t answering his phone so he has to still be at the class for whatever reason. He would answer if he was on his way,” Renjun responds with a slight frown.

“Or maybe his phone died?” Chenle suggests unsurely.

Mark does have a habit of forgetting to charge his phone so it is possible that his phone died. Though they doubt that that is the case, they’ll keep that hope.

“Let’s wait a bit more and then if he’s still not here then we’ll call his nanny,” Jaemin says.

Mark’s nanny is really just his parents’ most trusted worker, though admittedly not in a high position and is really a secretary, Lee Taeyong who gives more attention and care to him than his own parents do. If anyone would know where Mark is other than them, it would be Taeyong.

They agree to wait a bit more even though their nerves get worse as the minutes pass by. They try to distract themselves but that doesn’t stop them from constantly checking the time and looking towards the door, waiting for Mark to enter since both he and Jeno secretly have keys to Jaemin’s house for safety reasons.

It takes 30 more minutes of anxiety and worry until the door opens and closes in a quick but loud slam.

In walks Mark—more like scurries in—with wide eyes as he frantically kicks off his shoes while one hand pulls at his hair harshly. He walks past the others, mumbling something under his breath.

No one misses his red eyes and tear-stained cheeks though.

“Mark?” Jeno asks with worry lacing his voice. 

But Mark doesn’t stop. He continues walking past them and towards the bathroom. Everyone follows him, sharing concerned looks.

Mark enters the bathroom on the first floor and immediately begin to take off his clothes. His movements are wild, shirt making a tearing sound as he struggles to get it off of him.

“Mark hyung?” Jisung tries this time as they all watch their eldest from behind. 

Something about his posture and attitude tells them not to touch him at all, so they decide to listen to that something.

Mark still doesn’t respond or even acknowledge his name being called. Instead, he continues to take his clothes off. After struggling due to his wild movements, he succeeds in getting everything but his boxers off. He throws his clothes in the unnecessarily large tub and then go to the medicine cabinet and frantically searches through it. 

“What are you looking for? I can get it for you,” Jaemin says, hesitantly stepping forward.

Medicines that haven’t been used since Jaemin was a toddler are being flung out of the cabinet as Mark searches for whatever he’s trying to find, still mumbling under his breath.

Finally, he finds what he was looking for: a lighter.

One of Jaemin’s parents, he suspects both honestly, would always keep a lighter in every bathroom so they could “discreetly” smoke so as not to ruin his lungs so young in life. He never questioned it but did always find it fun to play with the lighters that never failed to be replaced with a new one when one went bad. 

Mark flick the lighter repeatedly, audibly muttering curses when nothing happens the first few times. Finally, a flame comes to life and he wastes no time moving.

He sets fire to his clothes.

“HOLY-- LEE MINHYUNG WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Donghyuck shouts, reaching forward and grabbing Mark.

“DON’T CALL ME THAT!” Mark screams in reply, roughly pulling away from Donghyuck.

The force he uses to pull away knocks him off his feet and onto his butt. The clothes burn in the tub next to him as he curls up into a ball, hair trapped in his fists as he tightly tugs on it. 

“I don’t ever want to hear that name again! Over and over he called me that name. He used that name to order me around. He moaned that name as he touched me. I don’t EVER want to hear that name again!” Mark says, staring at the tiled floor as tears begin to fall from his eyes.

Everyone freezes.

It’s startling to see Mark cry, he never cries—at least not in front of them. What’s more alarming though is what he said.

“Renjun, Donghyuck, get him to the living room and get him talking. Jisung go find him something to wear like a robe. Chenle, go make him something warm to drink. Jaemin and I are going to put out this fire and deal with the clothes,” Jeno orders, being the first one to snap out of his shock.

At the orders, the others snap out of their own shock and start moving. Renjun and Donghyuck carefully lift Mark up, doing everything they can to not frighten him. Chenle runs out the bathroom and into the kitchen to most likely make tea. Jisung leaves as well to head upstairs to Jaemin’s room for one of his many robes.

Jeno and Jaemin look at each other and then the burning clothes. Though his parents aren’t home most of the time, if they ever come home and see the tub with ashes and burn marks in it, he’ll be in a lot of trouble. 

“I’ll put out the fire, you grab a bag to put the clothes in,” Jaemin says.

Jeno nods and runs to go get a bag for the clothes. 

Jaemin turns the shower on, watching the smoke rise as the water douses the clothes. Though they weren’t burning for long, the clothes are burned beyond saving or even recognizing.

The fire slowly goes out. Jeno returns with a bag and air freshener to mask the burning scent until the air from the windows in the living room can naturally remove the smell.

“How’s it like out there?” Jaemin asks Jeno.

“Donghyuck is whispering something in his ear while holding him, Chenle made four different types of teas, Renjun looks like he’s about to punch someone, and Jisung is keeping Renjun from walking out and punching someone. They’re waiting for us,” Jeno responds.

So in other words, tense. 

“Let’s finish up here then,” Jaemin says.

They grab the clothes with the bag so as not to burn themselves and tie the bag tightly. Then Jaemin begins to use bleach to get the burning smell out of the tub while Jeno sprays the bathroom with a suffocating amount of freshener before discarding the clothes. When he returns, Jaemin tells him that they’ll most likely have to repaint the tub to cover the burn marks but they can do that tomorrow.

When they finish with the bathroom, they go to the living room where everyone is.

“Finally. We have to talk,” Renjun says, stopping the pacing he was just doing.

“What happened?” Jisung asks, looking over to Mark.

Mark is now curled up into Donghyuck in a long robe, the younger holding the teacup for him tightly. The muttering stopped but he still has a spaced-out look in his teary eyes. He looks lost.

“It’s best you all sit down for it or else you may try to storm out,” Donghyuck says.

They take his word for it, Renjun being the only one still standing since he already knows what’s going on. The only thing still keeping him there is Jisung’s hand in his, subtly keeping him in his spot.

“He was late today for a reason, a bad reason. But before I tell you, did the clothes burn completely?” Donghyuck says.

He discreetly tells Jeno and Jaemin to say yes so the two do.

“See, I told you it’s all gone,” he says softly to Mark. 

Mark lets out a shuddering breath but it sounds like one of slight relief. He really wanted those clothes gone it seems.

“Now, what happened?” Chenle asks this time.

Donghyuck’s hold on Mark tightens a fraction as if to prevent the latter from moving.

“His instructor held him back today. He said Mark wasn’t doing well in his studies and had to stay later to try and make it right. He threatened to tell his parents so Mark decided to stay. But it turned for the worst,” Donghyuck starts.

A small whimper comes from Mark and it breaks all of their hearts. They’ve never heard Mark sound so vulnerable.

“What do you mean by that?” Jeno asks apprehensively.

Mark hides his face more as if that can stop him from hearing the reply.

“The instructor forced his way on Mark,” Donghyuck says.

The air drops and time stills. No one says a word.

So Donghyuck continues.

“He said he’s been having issues with his wife and she no longer does things for him anymore. And since most of their arguments are about how much time he spends at work, he decided that he should be repaid for his sacrifice. He kept Mark in the private classroom and forced him down. Then he…he pulled down Mark’s pants and gave him a blowjob and a handjob until he felt satisfied. Using the time Mark came in at, you can tell how long that was for.”

Nothing moves when he stops speaking. For a minute, everything is still.

Then suddenly Chenle is out of his seat and in the bathroom, throwing up his stomach.

Jisung goes after him immediately to help him out.

Jaemin’s body falls into Jeno’s lap and he’s glad that he was sitting for that news or else he would have hit the ground. Jeno instinctively wraps his arms around Jaemin as a comfort though his own face looks pale white.

Renjun, already knowing about this before the other four were informed, still looks ready to punch someone though he does look a little sick himself.

After listening to Mark’s rough breathing and Chenle throwing up for about three minutes, Chenle and Jisung return to the living room with teacups for everyone because they now all definitely need it. Even Jaemin, who can’t stand to have caffeine that isn’t coffee, takes a cup from Jisung and begin to drink it slowly. 

“So you’re saying that Mark was sexually assaulted by his instructor today and it went on for about two hours?” Jeno asks slowly.

Donghyuck just nods in response.

And like that, everything that was supposed to be wasn’t. Life threw a boulder at them and all they can do is sit around and try to wrap their minds around it. They’ve been living in this world where the worst things that happened were being dragged somewhere boring, their parents neglecting them, and snobby people. The worst they’ve ever experienced was Jaemin’s injury but even that doesn’t compare to the complete dread and fear they’re feeling right now. In the real world, things like this do happen but they’ve been sheltered from seeing that and now they don’t know what to do about it. Now they’re experiencing it and they don’t have the first clue to handling it.

It’s silent in the house for the next two and a half hours, everyone barely moving. 

Mark has calmed down considerably but that lost look doesn’t lessen by much. Renjun and Donghyuck take turns holding him or making him take a sip of his drink. For the first time ever, their oldest looks as if he was the youngest and it throws them all in a loop.

The others just sit quietly as they try to wrap their minds around everything. They know better than to crowd Mark right now so they give him his space but that’s the only thing they do know right now. Everything else is up in the air and they don’t know what to do.

It’s nearing 11:00 at night when the silence is finally broken.

“Let’s kill him.”

It catches everyone’s attention, the comment surprisingly coming from their quiet, passive-aggressive—passive being a very key word here—youngest, Park Jisung.

“What’d you just say?” Jaemin asks, sitting up for the first time in hours.

All eyes are on Jisung, even Mark’s, as they wait for his needed reply.

“I said let’s kill him. He hurt our hyung and thinks he can get away with it. Let’s show him that he can’t,” Jisung says.

They look for a sign to tell them that he’s joking but there’s no humor anywhere on his face or in his statement.

“You can’t be serious, we’d be in so much trouble if we did that,” Jeno says in response.

“Who said we’d get caught?” Jisung says, and though it’s not much it does make a strong point.

But a single strong point isn’t enough to justify this idea that he clearly means seriously. They’re talking about murdering someone intentionally. At their age and status in the world, the courts and the press would have a field day with them. Not to mention what their parents would do.

“I’m in,” Donghyuck says.

The attention turns to him.

“What?” Renjun says this time.

“I’m in. He deserves it anyway; who with a mind would ever decide to hurt Mark of all people? The angel Christian child of one of the wealthiest and influential company owners who has never hurt a fly in his life. Anyone who can hurt someone like him and be okay with it deserves to die,” Donghyuck replies.

Okay, now that’s two people who seem terribly serious about this crazy idea. 

“We’re actually discussing this, okay wow,” Chenle says, clearly as caught off guard as the other four in the room who haven’t agreed with this idea.

“Is it any different than what our parents do? Didn’t they raise us to always remind people of their place and to make them pay if they cross you? That’s what this is; he messed with one of us so we have to teach him a lesson,” Jisung says.

“Yeah, but our parents make it very clear that they don’t want us near anything involving what they do. They want us as far away from that stuff as possible. That includes the murder part,” Renjun says.

Donghyuck scoffs.

“They only say that so we won’t mess anything up for them. If the people that worked for them knew that their kids were in their affairs then no one would take them seriously. Besides, this has nothing to do with our parents. This is our concern, not theirs,” he replies.

“You mean for us to act as our own group?” Renjun asks.

Donghyuck and Jisung nod together.

“But even if we do that, if our parents ever found out we’d still be in a lot of trouble. Whatever their reasons are, they still don’t want us in anything related to their line of work, especially mine and Renjun’s parents,” Chenle says.

The two Chinese of the group know their parents are in a bit more stuff than what their friends’ parents are in. Their affairs can trace back to when they were in China and without a doubt a good portion still lies there. The things their parents are in were made very clear to not even be thought about.

“Again, who said they’ll find out? We know more than they give us credit for. I’ve come across some of the ways my parents hid a murder from law enforcement and I know could do better than that with one eye closed. It’s not like they actually pay attention to us anyway,” Jisung responds. 

“Yeah but still. I don’t know,” Chenle says unsure, not too strongly on either side of the argument.

“We’re more likely to get caught with the fewer people we have working together on this. We won’t get caught if we work together. If it’s only the two of us then we have a higher risk of getting in trouble. We need you guys to be on board with us,” Jisung says.

Chenle and Jisung are close friends, practically inseparable. And if Chenle had to choose between risking Jisung getting in trouble by himself or risking going down with him, he would choose to go down with him. Unlike his parents, he knows what loyalty is and he knows Jisung would do the same for him.

“Alright, I’m in then,” Chenle says.

A look of relief crosses Jisung’s face and he gives Chenle a small smile. Chenle nods in return with his own small smile gracing his face. 

“Okay, so that’s three people who are agreeing to murder a man despite the odds being against us,” Jaemin says.

Donghyuck turns to Jaemin.

“You’re a misanthrope anyway; wouldn’t getting rid of this guy make humanity suck a bit less than it already does? Would you really care if someone like him goes or not?” Donghyuck says bluntly, tactfulness tending to be a quality he lacks at times.

Jaemin gives Donghyuck a light frown, not upset with the older but preferring for him to not speak as if he was morally challenged to begin with.

“I wouldn’t call myself that but I do agree that he does make the world an even worse place. But just because he’s the scum of the earth doesn’t mean I won’t feel anything about killing him. I’m cynical, not psychopathic,” Jaemin responds.

“Okay, valid point. But what happens the next time if we don’t do this? What happens if we let that man think he got away with this? We have to do this or else he may try something else the next time Mark’s parents send him back to class,” Donghyuck says.

The sound of Mark’s breath hitching at those words clenches at Jaemin’s heart. He’s a sucker when it comes to his friends and would literally do anything he could to make sure they’re happy. They’re all he has and they keep him sane. Before he met them—minus Jeno since they grew up together due to their fathers being old business buddies—he would stay out late doing whatever he felt like, most of what he was doing being very dangerous to himself and sometimes others. He would glare and snap at anyone who tried to talk to him, or worse touch him, and even got into a few fights because in his mind he didn’t need people’s attention and affection. But when they came along, an affectionate and protective side that only happened around Jeno came out more and it was a feeling he realized he loved having for these special few in his life. They mean more to him than he does to himself.

So could he really let Mark go back to that man after what just happened to him?

With the way his heart broke seeing Mark in such a vulnerable state, the answer is no. NO, he could not.

“Fine, I’m in too. I refuse to let that piece of trash have another chance to even get near him,” Jaemin says.

And as the rule goes: where Jaemin goes, Jeno goes.

“Count me in too. If you think I’m going to let Jisung and Jaemin plan a murder alongside the two devils of this group alone, then you are sadly mistaken,” Jeno says.

Admittedly, Donghyuck and Chenle do have a mischievous streak on them and when they get together to plan something, supervision is always needed. Especially now that they’re about to plan a murder.

Now that’s five on board and two left.

The two eldest in the room look at each other, Mark looking at Renjun with uncertainty and fear and Renjun looking at Mark with concern.

“You guys are really going to do this, aren’t you?” Renjun asks, glancing over to the others.

“We are,” Donghyuck replies.

Renjun sighs and turns back to Mark.

“I’ll join in this only if you want this to happen. You were the one affected so it’s your choice,” he says.

Mark’s eyes widen a bit before he looks down to his knees in worry. He’s silent, just as he has been for the past few hours, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t thinking about it.

His friends are willing to kill this man who has hurt him. They’re willing to go against their parents’ rules just to payback this man for what he has done. He doubts that his parents would actually do something about the situation—if they believed him that is. The most that would probably happen is they move his instructor to the other side of South Korea and call it a day.

But his friends? His friends are ready to kill the man all so he never has to see him again.

Something resolves in his heart at that thought. The fear and disgust he had up until now mellows down and sudden anger and hatred fills him. How dare this man do this to him? How dare he let such a pitiful person turn him into this weak mess who broke in front of his friends? He’s the eldest and as the eldest, he should be there for his friends at all times. And if they’re willing to commit murder for him then he is damn sure as not going to let them do it without him.

Mark looks back up to Renjun with a newly lit fire behind those lost eyes of his. 

“I want that asshole gone for good,” he says.

They’re the first words he says out loud for hours but they have a lot of passion in them. He’s sure of what he wants.

Renjun knows this, he can see this. So he turns back around to where Jisung is, the one who started this idea. It’s clear that this idea just changed in the few seconds that Mark spoke. It went from being a revenge plan to making their friend’s wish come true. It became a lot more serious now and a lot more personal.

“Alright, so how are we going to do this?” Renjun asks, his way of showing that he’s on board.

And with that, a new team was formed.


	2. First time's a charm

It took them four days to create a perfect plan.

Over the span of four days, they created a plan that couldn’t possibly fail. Each day they would meet at Jaemin’s house so no one could overhear them and they would plan together. They went through every possible mistake that could happen and any flaws that could mean trouble for them. Due to it being their first time doing anything like this, they made extensive back-up plans just in case one of those mistakes they found ever happened. They ran their idea through a fine comb until they were sure it was perfect.

In all honesty, they’re a bit proud of themselves for the idea they came up with. They’re almost certain that it generally takes much longer for rookies to come up with such a detailed plan. Their parents should give their intelligence more credit than they do.

Finally, after all of that planning and reassuring, the day is finally here.

It’s early in the afternoon, Mark’s lesson scheduled to begin in an hour and a half, and everyone got their parents to cancel their activities for the day except for Mark as planned. They told their parents that they were throwing a surprise party for Mark since he’s seemed down lately. Though their parents really couldn’t care less about what they’re doing for whatever friend, they each have their ways of convincing them. 

Jisung just batted his eyes like the little angel he looks like and his parents, who do outwardly show attention and affection towards him on more occasions than the others’ parents do, said yes and went back to work.

Jeno got his “nanny” Doyoung to vouch that he needs this day to relieve stress and those two together are a force his parents haven’t learned how to say no to yet. 

Chenle told his parents that it’s a great way to get Mark to trust him more—since Mark’s parents are apparently the ones his parents worry about the most—and they immediately agreed since they are not above using their son as an “unknowing” piece in their game. 

Donghyuck used the fact that he’s been doing well in anger management lately so he could afford to miss one day, directing the fact towards his father who has something that can vaguely be called a soft spot for him, and he was set free for the day. 

Renjun, like Jeno, used his “nanny” Sicheng to ask his parents for him since very few people can say no to Sicheng and his parents are no different. 

Jaemin, who had to ask to have his activities canceled and to use the house for a party, promised to dye his hair back to a normal color and his mother immediately said yes. Everyone who knows that family well enough knows that in that household, his mother calls all the shots. And as promised, he dyed his hair a different color the next day, black, making his mother ecstatic.

Now that they’re all free for the day, they can carry out their plan smoothly.

“You guys ready for this?” Donghyuck asks.

They've gathered in Jaemin’s living again, right where this all started at, all ready and waiting for the time to start this.

The living has been decorated with party stuff so as to not only have a strong alibi but to also actually have that party so they can celebrate afterward.

“As ordered, a venti Starbucks coffee cup filled with coffee freshly brewed over a bit more heat with five sugars just the way he likes it. The difference is the crap ton of soy milk in it instead of almond milk. If the bastard doesn’t die from his soy allergy then the organic peanut oil on the mouth of the cup sure will kill him. I even spelled his name wrong in a pretty barista font that’s on all of his daily coffee cups. The single visible difference between an original and this one is going to be the coffee stopper in the lid of this one,” Jaemin says proudly.

Since Jaemin is their resident coffee addict, they left him to deal with replicating Mark’s instructor’s daily coffee order—Mark knowing the order by heart after hearing it a few times—while adding a bit extra so they can complete their job. They’re not even surprised that he knew how to do the barista handwriting because of how much he’s always in a cafe or coffee shop. He was even able to figure out when he needed to brew the coffee and at what temperature so it can be the exact same temperature, or damn near it, as it would be by the time it would reach that pitiful man’s hands.

“Great. Jeno, are you ready?” Renjun asks.

“Yup, I know exactly where his secretary stands and wait for the order and what he finds to be distracting. I’m probably going to be a bit cold but he sure won’t be when he’s finished talking with me,” Jeno responds with a slight smirk.

Despite being the second most genuinely angelic in the group, Mark being the first, Jeno has his own manipulative streak going for him—a trait he’s going to say he got from his mother who also likes to see when people fall for her charm. Distracting and getting people to focus on him is what he’s good at and being in those acting classes makes him even better at it. No one ever suspects him.

Currently, he stands in a sleeveless shirt and running pants. His hair is wet, which will dry a bit so as to look like he has been sweating and he has a bit of makeup to define his face a bit more. He’s bound to catch that secretary’s attention.

“I’ll make sure to warm you up in my arms when you return,” Jaemin says with wide open arms.

Jeno rolls his eyes playfully, knowing the younger’s antics very well by now after so many years.

“I’m sure you will Jaem. Are you ready Chenle?” he responds.

Chenle nods and holds up his phone.

“Injunnie already put the fake messages on my phone coming from the same number as Mark hyung mom’s phone. I’ll show him the messages and get us out of there before he even takes a sip of his coffee,” he says.

Chenle is going with Mark to his lesson today but is going to tell his instructor that the lesson is canceled for today under directions from Mark’s “mother”, or in other words Renjun who sent messages using her number. Donghyuck already told Mark’s parents that they were planning a surprise party for Mark and that they’ll most likely be taking him out early. His parents didn’t mind, mainly because Taeyong was there to advise them to let Mark go to the party since he has also noticed a more somber mood in Mark.

Granted, Mark was mostly faking his sad mood at home and they didn’t tell his parents that they’re going to lie completely to his instructor but those are small details aren’t they?

“Jisung, was everything okay on your end?” Chenle asks.

Jisung gives him two thumbs up.

“Luckily for me, his instructor is too prideful to carry an epi-pen. He believes he’s careful enough where he won’t need it and nothing ever gets that serious. All I had to do was replace the medicine last night with old ones so they won’t work when he grabs for them. They really should have better security there by the way. I just said I was a student and I left my bag in a classroom and they let me in. And thanks to Renjun hyung, no cameras saw me as I entered his classroom/office,” Jisung replies.

Renjun was able to get into the camera system, which is horrifically outdated for a place that tutors wealthy people’s kids, easily with his skills and temporarily shut them down as Jisung did what he had to do last night. He put them back online in a short enough amount of time to just appear as a normal glitch expected from technology that old. See, sometimes, being cheap can really cost you (no pun intended honestly). 

“What do you know, my old medicine cabinets finally came in use. Good job Jisungie. Last but certainly most important, are you ready Mark hyung?” Jaemin says.

If anyone has the hardest part of today’s mission, it’s Mark. He has to go back and face that man as if nothing happened and that is more than what any of them have to do. 

But to Mark, this is his chance to take back what he lost to his instructor. Control. In all his life, Mark has never felt so helpless than he did that night and while he doesn’t mind being weak in front of his friends, he doesn’t like the fact that someone else made him weak and vulnerable. His father ingrained in him that that was one of the worst qualities to have and he should never let another person make him vulnerable, for it gives them power over him. Before he used to think his father was exaggerating but now he understands. And now, he’s going to take back that power his instructor took.

“Ready as I’ll ever be. It’s a shame we won’t get to see him croak in person,” he responds.

Renjun, who is still in the camera system, is going to record the moments from when the instructor drinks the coffee to when he meets his end or when the paramedics come, whichever comes first—though they’re hoping his death comes first so they don’t have to go to the hospital and finish the job—so they’ll get to see his last moments on video. Not as good as in person but less self-incriminating that way.

“Well then, it seems like everything is ready. Let’s get this show on the road then guys,” Donghyuck says.

Donghyuck, Jaemin, Renjun, and Jisung are staying here so to have the alibi of setting up for the party. Jeno is going “running” and then conveniently stopping at the Starbucks the secretary always goes to. Mark and Chenle are going to make sure they get there before the secretary returns with the coffee so the timing doesn’t seem suspicious. All in all, they’re more than ready for this.

Jeno leaves first, taking Jaemin’s carefully crafted drink with him.

“Keep in touch, tell us when you get there,” Renjun says.

“Got it. Tell me if you need me to do anything along the way or while I’m there,” Jeno replies.

He heads out and hails a cab after walking a few blocks away from Jaemin’s house.

“If you can get me to this address in under an hour, I’ll pay you twice as much as the regular fare and pay for the speeding ticket if you get one. Make it in thirty minutes and I’ll throw in a bonus,” Jeno says to the cab driver with a smile, showing the driver the address and money he has in his pocket.

The driver doesn’t even hesitate. He tells Jeno to strap in and hold onto his coffee before speeding off.

Jeno laughs to himself, sitting back in his seat and making sure that not a drop of coffee spills. The speed doesn’t bother him; he’s been in the car with Ten and Johnny, two foreigners yelling back and forth because they were late for a meeting with their bosses after picking him and Donghyuck up. And considering how often deportation is being used as a threat, the two had a reason to worry. Nothing will beat that car ride so this driver’s speed is nothing to him.

Surprisingly, the driver is not pulled over by the police at any time and they make it to the address in thirty-five minutes. The world must want this man to disappear if this is already starting off on a good note.

As promised, Jeno pays the cab driver twice the fare amount and out of the goodness of his heart, he throws in that bonus despite being five minutes over. The driver deserved it after being such a willing spirit.

Jeno gets out of the car, only being a few blocks away from the Starbucks. He checks his phone and sees he’s right on time, the secretary won’t be there for another ten minutes. He starts walking, feeling his hair and is glad to notice that it’s realistically damp as if he just came from running. Admittedly, he is a bit cold, the spring weather not warm enough currently for the sleeveless attire he’s in.

When he reaches the Starbucks, he notices that it’s crowded enough for attention to stay off of him but empty enough for him to be able to make a move. He goes to a corner and stands as if he was waiting for an order. He texts Renjun, letting him know that he is there now and is just waiting for his target to walk in. Renjun responds that everything is good on their end and he sent Mark and Chenle over already.

He puts his phone back in his pocket and waits, trying to stay as inconspicuous as possible. So far he’s doing a good job of it.

Right on time, the secretary walks in.

Mark has explained in detail what his instructor’s secretary looks like and Renjun has found pictures of the man to show him. He knows it’s him the second he walks in. 

He listens as the man orders the drink—a venti coffee with five sugars and almond milk—and gives the name to which the barista seems to spell it wrong anyway, not listening to how the man ordering tells her how to spell it. Jeno catches a glimpse of the cup and from where he’s standing it looks like the name is spelled exactly the same as Jaemin spelled it. He won’t ask how Jaemin knew that; the accuracy is commendable but borderline scary.

He moves a bit closer to the counter. He’s not close enough for the secretary to notice him but he is close enough to see the cup he is supposed to switch out.

Finally, the name is called and Jeno makes his move.

Jeno steps to the counter the same time the secretary does, the cups of coffee also being placed down at the same time, the coffee stopper in the one Jaemin made being taken out seconds before. They both reach for the correct cup and Jeno purposely touches the man’s hand briefly. The secretary looks up and Jeno gives him his famous eye smile.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn't mean to bump into you,” he says.

The man clearly checks Jeno out and Jeno feels that rush of satisfaction he always feels when he captures someone’s attention. It’s a good thing Jeno looks a bit older for his age right now otherwise this late twenties secretary would have been giving him a different look right now.

“It’s alright, I wasn’t paying attention. Go ahead, grab your cup first,” the man says, most likely in an attempt to be gentlemanlike.

Jeno gives him another smile as he grabs the original cup of coffee and discreetly putting the fake one nearer to the man. Fortunately for him, the man in front of him doesn’t take his eyes off of him, completely enthralled by just his smile.

“Thank you, you’re very kind,” Jeno says happily, giving the man a friendly wink.

The man blindly grabs the other cup and gives Jeno a smile in return. 

It’s almost a shame how quickly this man can get distracted. But then again, he’s been friends with Donghyuck and Jaemin for a while now and those two take the cake on having a short attention span at times so he’s not surprised.

“Have a good day,” Jeno says, waving goodbye.

“Oh uh you too,” the secretary responds, quickly remembering to wave in return.

Jeno walks out of the store with a smirk on his face. He pulls out his phone and this time texts Jaemin.

_ ‘Success. He’ll be back in probably 15 minutes since he’s also waiting for his treat. Oh and I know you like your coffee black but I hope you won’t waste this cup I just stole for you.’ _

The reply comes seconds later.

_ ‘Great job, Mark and Chenle are already there now. They took a page for your book and bribed their driver to speed. And I would never waste coffee, how dare you think such a thing?!’ _

_ ‘You threw out a whole pot just two days ago...’ _

_ ‘Instant coffee isn’t real coffee. Next time don’t let them bring such trash into my house. Now come back and bring ice cream. They want it for the cake.’ _

Jeno chuckles at the response. Jaemin is very adamant about his coffee and at times it’s very funny. 

_ ‘Fine but I’m picking the flavors.’ _

He’s succeeded at his part. Now it’s time to watch it all unfold.

~~~

Mark and Chenle enter the building.

Mark being a regular student, no longer has to show his ID to the guards at the desk. Chenle does and gets a visitor pass. They continue on with no problem.

Mark’s phone buzzes, telling him he has a message. He takes out his phone and sees it’s a message from Donghyuck.

_ ‘Jeno succeeded on his end. He said you have about 15 minutes before the sec returns. Good luck.’ _

Fifteen minutes should be enough for them to do this as long as his instructor doesn’t try to talk and hold a conversation.

“Hyuck says Jeno succeeded and we have about fifteen minutes before the secretary returns,” Mark says to Chenle.

“That’s all the time we need. Let’s make this quick,” Chenle responds.

They reach the classroom/office where his lessons are always held, and Mark subconsciously shudders. He has to get this over with now so he can go back to his normal self. He doesn’t like someone having control over him like this. 

“It’s going to be okay. Fifteen minutes and this is all over with, remember?” Chenle says to him, noticing the shudder.

Mark nods, determination in his veins.

“Just fifteen minutes,” he replies.

The two enter the room.

“Ah Minhyung, you’re here. Let’s get-”

His instructor turns around and stops short when he sees Chenle also in the room. 

Chenle gives him a sweet smile despite the strong urge to punch the man in the face, especially after Mark seemed to use all his willpower so as not to flinch at the sound of his Korean name coming from this man’s mouth.

“Hi, my name is Zhong Chenle. I’m a friend of Mark hyung,” Chenle says cheerfully, purposely using Mark’s English name.

The instructor looks to Mark as if to secretly ask if he told Chenle what happened last week. Mark “discreetly” shakes his head no as if he doesn’t want Chenle to see. This seems to cause his instructor’s shoulders to relax a bit.

“Good afternoon Chenle. What brings you here? I’ll also ask you to use his Korean name since the purpose of his lessons is to submerge him more fully into Korean culture,” his instructor says.

Chenle wishes Mark could understand Chinese because if he could, he would be cursing out this man right now with a grin on his face. But he’ll be good right now for the sake of keeping in character.

Chenle turns to Mark with a confused face and asks ‘what’ in English as if he didn’t understand what was just said to him in Korean.

“He asked you why are you here and to use my Korean name,” Mark says in English.

Mark then turns back to his instructor.

“Chenle is from China and is still learning Korean so he said he wanted to see what my lessons were like before deciding to sign up for some. He was supposed to join me last week but he was sick. He also does not know my Korean name so that’s why he calls me Mark,” he says in Korean.

Chenle smiles sweetly in conjunction with Mark’s comment as if he really was just a simple Chinese boy trying to learn Korean.

He suddenly gasps and taps Mark’s shoulder.

“Hyung, I left my ID with the security guard. Can you please go get it for me?” Chenle says.

Mark nods.

“Sure thing Lele. You should be more careful about where you leave your cards,” Mark replies.

He leaves the room, leaving Chenle and his instructor together.

Chenle makes a scene out of “checking” to make sure Mark is far away enough. When he is done, he turns back to the instructor.

“Sorry for my sudden appearance. I’m actually here to distract hyung, though my Korean does need some work done to it. You see, our friends are throwing him a surprise party since he’s been sad since last week for some reason. He won’t tell us why so we decided to just cheer him up. When we entered here, my friend texted me that they’re ready now so when hyung comes back, we’re going to be leaving,” Chenle says with innocent excitement.

The instructor tries to remain calm but Chenle notices the way his fingers curled when he mentioned last week. 

“That’s very nice of you all but unfortunately, I cannot let him leave early without permission from his parents,” the man says, trying to remain professional.

Chenle uses all of his power to not roll his eyes and to keep smiling. He can’t wait until this is over.

“I know that. I have permission right here. Our families are pretty close, so his mother let me take him out early. Look,” Chenle says.

He takes out his phone, briefly noticing that he has about seven more minutes before the secretary returns, and open his messages. He pulls up the chat with “Mark’s mother” and shows it to the instructor.

“See, full permission to take him,” he says.

The instructor doesn’t seem happy with the idea of Mark not being at his lessons today, dislike showing no matter how hard he tries to hide it. It makes Chenle sick to think that this man was probably planning on doing something today as well.

“If you don’t mind, may I see the number to make sure this is his mother’s phone? It’s for legal reasons of course,” the man says.

The longer he’s in here, the harder it becomes for Chenle not to punch the lights out of the man. He just has to wait a bit longer and this man will get what’s coming to him.

“It’s no problem at all. Here,” he says, showing the contact information.

He is satisfied to see the man’s jaw tighten a fraction as he realizes that the number is indeed Mark’s mother’s number and he has to let Mark go. There’s only so much he can do against a pair of rich brats and their parents' permission to do what they want.

“I see. Well then, do have fun at your little party. I sure hope it cheers Minhyung up,” the instructor responds a bit tightly.

Chenle acts as if he paid it no mind.

“Is that Mark you’re referring to? Well, either way, thank you,” he responds.

Right on cue, Mark enters the room again.

“I got your ID Lele,” he says.

“Thanks. I got a call from Jisung though saying that they need us to leave immediately. Something happened and they need our help. I already got your mother’s permission for us to go,” Chenle says.

Mark convincingly fakes being surprised in response. He turns to his instructor as if to ask for permission to leave even though his mother’s okay is all he really needs.

“Go ahead Minhyung, your friends are waiting. I’ll see you next week and I expect the work I gave you to do to be top quality since you have an extra week to work on it,” his instructor says.

“Yes, sir. See you next week,” Mark says.

Chenle bows in respect and waves goodbye. When they’re behind the closed door, Chenle sticks up the middle finger, saying a few loose curses in Chinese. 

“So long and good riddance,” Mark mumbles under his breath.

Then both him and Chenle leave.

As they exit the building, the secretary scurries pass them with red cheeks. Chenle checks his phone and notices that it’s been pass fifteen minutes already.

“I thought they said we only had fifteen minutes?” He says.

Mark chuckles.

“They did. But Jeno bought us some more time when he saw the guy leaving and I didn’t text Renjun that we were leaving,” he replies.

Chenle also chuckles at that. Jeno helped them out there.

They hail a cab and head back to Jaemin’s house, getting out a few blocks away and then walking. 

When they reach the house and Mark steps foot inside, confetti flies everywhere.

“CONGRATULATIONS!” The boys shout.

Renjun hands Mark and Chenle each a party hat and a noise maker.

“The world is officially free of that horrible man and you are free from those classes,” he says.

Chenle cheers, never needing a noise maker to make some noise. He goes and joins Donghyuck who is celebrating to nonexistent music.

Mark, on the other hand, is still focusing on Renjun’s comment.

“You’re serious? He’s dead already?” He asks Renjun as if it’s impossible to believe.

“Yup. I have the video if you want to see it now. He went into shock immediately so I guess Jaemin wasn’t joking about the amount of milk and oil he used. He dropped to the floor and was gone before paramedics could arrive. He even changed colors. He’s gone and not even the hospital can change that,” Renjun replies.

Mark takes a moment to take in what he was just told. They planned a murder and it went smoothly with no hiccups. The man is gone. He died and it was thanks to them.

At one point, Mark was sure he’d feel some guilt towards this. He did help plan someone’s murder. But right now, he doesn’t feel any of the guilt he thought he would. All he feels now is relief, energy, and pride. A group of teens who are barely considered adults flawlessly planned and committed an act that takes their parents a week or more to do if they don’t want to be messy.

They succeeded in the very things their parents told them to stay away from.

A smile breaks out on his face and for the first time since last week, he feels like himself again.

“Guys, let’s celebrate.”


	3. Ms. Amélie Valleau

“Out of all the things our parents drag us to, this has got to be the most boring thing ever,” Chenle mumbles through his earpiece hidden in his earring.

He stands on the outskirts of the room as if he was only taking a moment to himself. 

“It's a quote on quote charity ball. Charity and our parents rarely go in the same sentence; of course it would be this boring,” Donghyuck replies through his piece.

He stands on a completely different side of the room, giving a friendly smile to those who pass him.

“Keep your eyes on the prize guys. Once we get that bracelet, these people will never do business with these companies willingly again and we get easy money. Who doesn’t love setting up a good scandal?” Renjun says from his position on the upper level where he can see where everyone is standing.

That’s right, they’re not here just because their parents forced them to be here. They’re here because they are on another mission.

It’s been about a year and some months now since they killed Mark’s old Korean instructor. In the span of that time they’ve done nothing but improve in what they do. It was clear they had a skill and, believe it or not, it was fun to do all the planning and see it work out. They weren’t going to stop there.

Over the course of the year, they’ve become the group they call DREAM, a young group who shows adults how it’s really done. They’ve solidified their roles and got their teamwork down pack.

Mark is the brains of the group and unofficial leader. If anyone can catch a flaw in a plan, it’s going to be Mark. He keeps them on track and gives them confidence in what they do. He also keeps their parents off their backs. The excuses and reasoning he uses are flawless. He’s been around lawyers since he was born and his parents can lie while their hand is on the Bible—though his mother fervently prays afterward for forgiveness—it only makes sense that it’s in his blood at this point. They could be a town over doing a mission and Mark can convince all of the parents that they’re just having some good ol’ fun at a beach somewhere. He can always get them out of hot water.

Renjun is their techie. With his parents owning one of the largest tech companies in South Korea, it’s no surprise that he has a knack for technology. He is now rarely found without a computer or phone to use since he’s started using it for their group work. He made or got them things such as earpieces to use on missions, decoders that send information straight to his computer, and a bunch more tech stuff. He tends to overlook the missions, seeing everything from a screen. He keeps them in touch with each other.

Jeno is their distraction. If they need to distract a room of people or just one person, Jeno is their guy. He’ll sometimes go undercover with Jaemin, the two love to cause a scene and act out. Jeno is also good at acquiring information. Everyone trusts that smile of his without a shadow of a doubt.

Donghyuck is the brawns of the group. Physical work is his field. Need someone to climb a gate? Donghyuck can do it. Need someone to carry you after you pretended to pass out? Hyuck has you. Need to punch the lights out of someone? He’ll probably do it before you give the orders. He likes to say this is real anger management. He acts as a subtle intimidation force, leaving shivers down people’s spine without them knowing why. It’s useful in getting things they want.

Jaemin has taken up the chemist role of the group. While he does enjoy acting and being on the field, which he still does, he found joy in mixing and creating things. From that first killer coffee he made, he just likes the idea of making stuff ranging from sleeping drugs to straight up poison. He’s even made acid one time directly on a gate—he threw the two formulas at the gate and when they touched each other they burned through the metal—and it made him overjoyed. If they need a concoction then he can make it. He also learned mixology in case that is ever needed on a job, not to mention just fun to know overall.

Chenle is their supplier. Things like weapons and expensive tech do not come easy but he knows how to get them, mainly since his own parents have their hands in that field as well. While they don’t use violence often, rarely having to because they don’t get seen often, it’s a backup just in case. No matter how they slice it, they’re still doing sorta-kinda illegal work and they don’t have a business for a cover-up like their parents. They’re the ones doing the work so they have to have protection.

Jisung is the stealth of the group. There hasn’t been a place he couldn’t sneak through. He’s as light and graceful as a dancer—because he is one—so he can move without making a sound. He also makes a really good thief too, a skill they don’t know how he acquired but still appreciate, which comes in handy in cases like this one.

Tonight at the “charity” ball their parents are collectively hosting, a bunch of extremely wealthy people from all over are here. They say the money is for charity but really it’s going in the pockets of their parents and their illegal activities. Either way, rich foreigners are here and looking to make a deal with one of the companies’ owners.

DREAM’s target is one person: an ever beautiful, ever rich, French actor and model that Jeno’s mother is dying to work with.

His mother’s company is a well-known fashion company and is one of the best. Being in the limelight is what his mother lives for, so having that model working with her company will give her extra publicity. Her goal tonight is to get that model on board with her. And if she gets that model then that means his father gets a new famous face on one of the shows on his television station which gives him even higher ratings. A win-win for both of his parents.

Unfortunately for his parents, their goal is to wreck that opportunity.

It’s simple really. The lovely lady is wearing jewelry that costs more than all of their suits combined—and that’s not an easy feat. Her bracelet though is made from extremely expensive jewels and costs close to seven million won. That’s unnecessarily expensive in their opinion but they won’t complain since they’ll be stealing it. 

The idea is once the bracelet is gone, the lady will realize that someone stole it. A scene will be made and who’s going to make a deal when there’s a thief on the loose? When all of that is done, they’re going to sell the bracelet back to her for a higher price the original value. 

Do they feel bad for doing this to her? Not at all. No one who has money in this room is an angel. They’ve all done something atrocious and all think they can never be outsmarted. DREAM just prove those people wrong.

This lady didn’t even pay for the bracelet herself in the first place. It came from the money she took from her third ex-husband, may he rest in peace, after she killed him off for the insurance money. She’s done a lot to get to where she’s at but no one looks into it because she’s beautiful and rich. If that’s the case then it doesn’t hurt for them to teach her a lesson since no one else will.

Mess up their parents’ deals and teach a crook a lesson. It’s a win-win for them.

“Guys, I have eyes on the target. She just walked in. Red dress, silver heels, upstyle hairdo, and coming in near Mark,” Jaemin says.

He’s also on the upper level, in a clear position to see the door to see who enters and who leaves.

“Copy that. It’s time to get this started. Jeno, you’re up,” Mark says.

Jeno begins to walk over to the target. He makes brief eye contact with Mark and gives him a nod.

It doesn’t take long for him to be in front of their target, Ms. Amélie Valleau.

“Excuse me, Madame Valleau?” Jeno says in his best English.

She turns around and he gives her a welcoming smile.

“Yes?” She replies in English.

From the information they found on her, her Korean is not the greatest so it’s best to talk to her in English or French. While Mark would be the best person for conversing with her, Jeno using broken English comes across as cute and being the son of the CEO of a popular fashion company makes him a good talking candidate.

“My name is Lee Jeno. It’s nice to meet you,” he says and bows respectfully to her.

She smiles and holds out her hand to him. He takes it and places a polite kiss on her hand.

“Would you happen to be the son of Lee Mi-Cha?” She asks.

He nods in response with his lovely eye smile.

He’s grateful that Mark spends a lot of time teaching them English or else he would not be confident with having this conversation right now.

_ “Speaking of your mother, she’s watching you like a hawk right now. Make Ms. Valleau happy to ease your mother’s nerves before Jaemin goes to talk to her,” _ Renjun says to him in his earpiece.

Of course his mother is watching him. She wants this deal so badly, the last thing she needs is her son ruining it for her.

It’s a shame for her that that’s what’s going to happen anyway.

“Yes, that is my mother. She didn’t tell me you were so beautiful and young. I’m amazed at your work for such a young woman,” Jeno says to her.

He can practically see her ego being fed. 

She’s in her late thirties but she’s one of those women who likes to believe she never aged past her twenties. Calling her young is an easy way to get on her good side. And as a model, all that seems to matter is how she looks so it’s a no brainer to compliment her looks.

She laughs daintily, using her hand to cover her mouth partially.

“Aren’t you a charmer? Thank you for the compliment,” she replies.

_ “Good job. I’m sending Jaemin now to distract your mother. Keep Valleau’s attention until it’s time,” _ Renjun says.

Keeping her attention is going to be the easiest thing he’s done tonight.

 

~~~

 

Jaemin gets the green light from Renjun to go downstairs.

It’s not hard to see Mrs. Lee watch her son’s every move as he talks to Amélie Valleau. This opportunity is probably the only one she’ll have in her mind, though she isn’t wrong, so she wants to make sure it goes smoothly. 

Jaemin caught the satisfied smirk on Mrs. Lee’s face when Jeno successfully flatters Ms, Valleau. That’s probably the closest to a proud mother she’ll ever get but hey it’s something.

His job is to distract Mrs. Lee so when it’s time to take the bracelet, she doesn’t have eyes on the scene. Luckily for him, she seems to like him. She likes that he can catch someone attention, a trait she believes is important, and that he and Jeno get along so well. He keeps Jeno out of her hair and keeps her son happy. It only makes sense that she likes him.

So when she spots him walking up to her, it isn’t a surprise to see a polite but somewhat friendly smile reach her face.

“Good evening Mrs. Lee,” Jaemin greets.

“Good evening Jaemin. Are you enjoying yourself tonight?” She replies.

The only interesting thing tonight is the show they’re pulling right now. This ball is an absolute drag but, obviously, he is not going to tell her that.

“I am. I see Jeno is enjoying himself as well. He told me that you said she was an important person so he decided to make a good impression for you. He’s quite the flatterer I must say,” Jaemin says.

Mrs. Lee smirks proudly.

“Of course he is, he’s my son after all. If anyone other than me should greet her first then it should be him,” she responds as if she always had full confidence in him.

If only she knew how much of her Jeno really has and how it’s going to lead to her downfall one day.

“I’m sure he’ll keep her entertained until you are able to go meet her. Is there anyone else here of importance? I actually don’t know much about tonight other than Yuta-ssi told me beforehand,” Jaemin says.

Yuta is his “nanny” and he’s probably one of the few people outside of his friend group that he’d venture to say he cares for. All of their parents’ secretaries are like nannies and friends to them, them being the ones to give attention and care towards the group for as long as they’ve been working for their parents. It’s uncertain if their parents realize that their secretaries are closer with their kids than just a strictly professional standard, but if they are, no one seems to mind. Yuta was the one who picked him up and drove him here tonight. Yuta was also the one to relay his parents’ message about this ball and drop off his suit since his mother was too busy to make that phone call herself.

“Oh, there are plenty of people of importance here. I hear that your parents are currently speaking with an English doctor who is thinking about doing overseas work,” she responds.

He wouldn’t be surprised if they were speaking to a foreign doctor. They love to brag that people all over the world come to work at their hospitals.

“How exciting. I’m glad that tonight has such a nice turnout,” he says.

_ “Jaemin, Donghyuck needs to know which case to use before you guys start dancing. Chenle is almost ready so that’s going to happen soon. Use the color of the case in a sentence for me to know,” _ Renjun says to him.

He made two dissolving tabs tonight just in case something took a turn they didn’t want. They’re going to put one in Ms. Valleau’s drink to cause a scene. The small blue case, the size of a contact lens case, has an odorless tab that will make her nauseous and most likely throw up, giving Jisung time to snag the bracelet on her way running to the restroom. The small red case has a strongly scented liquid tab. It doesn’t do much but tastes really bad but the scent is enough to cause a scare. The idea is that if Chenle didn’t get permission to perform tonight then they’d go with the blue case to distract her. But it seems he’s good to go so they’ll go with their first idea. There’s no better distraction than a crowd and a drug threat.

“I must say, Mrs. Lee, that is a lovely shade of  _ red _ lipstick on you. It suits you very nicely,” Jaemin says.

_ “Got it, red case. Be ready to dance, Chenle is in position,” _ Renjun says.

Good, that means things are moving along smoothly.

“Why, thank you Jaemin. It’s one of my favorite shades,” Mrs. Lee says.

As if on cue, the resonating sound of a glass clinging catches everyone’s attention. Everyone turns to see Mr. and Mrs. Zhong on the front staircase.

“Attention everyone, if we could have your attention please,” Mrs. Zhong says.

Everyone silences down and pays attention to the couple.

“We hope you are all having a wonderful time tonight. On behalf of all of us hosts, we’d like to say thank you for being here,” Mr. Zhong says.

Jaemin catches the quick sneer that Mrs. Lee gives the Chinese couple before setting her face back into a neutral expression. She really doesn’t like it when someone other than her family is in the spotlight because that means she isn’t in the spotlight.

“Now, we have a special treat for you. Our son Zhong Chenle will now play you a piece he has specially prepared for you all tonight,” Mrs. Zhong says, gesturing to the piano in the front where Chenle is standing.

Pride can be heard in her voice as she introduces her son. If there’s one thing their parents like to do involving them, it’s showing them off. If it makes them seem better than the next person then they’ll gladly brag about their kids.

Chenle takes a bow as people politely clap. He then takes a seat at the piano bench and gracefully places his hands on the keys. It’s completely silent for a second.

And then he takes off.

His fingers begin to skillfully dance across the keys, creating a lovely melody that many begin to dance to.

“May I have this dance, Mrs. Lee?” Jaemin asks with a slight bow.

“How gentlemanly of you. You may,” she responds, giving him her hand.

He takes her hand and leads her to a spot for them to dance.

_ “Distractions are in place. Jisung and Donghyuck, you have the green light.” _

 

~~~

 

“Would you like to dance Ms. Valleau?” Jeno asks.

He spots Jaemin across the room already beginning to dance with his mother. That’ll keep her occupied until they get what they need.

“I’d be delighted to,” Ms. Valleau replies.

He takes her hand and leads her to where there are a bit more people around dancing. On his way over, he passes Jisung who has also begun dancing with a partner. The two make eye contact and a nonverbal agreement passes between them.

They’re on the same page and they’re ready.

Like the gentleman his classes taught him to be, he takes the lead as he and Ms. Valleau begin to dance to Chenle’s beautiful music. He casually keeps them moving so he can see the entire room for his members. He also makes sure they’re close enough to other people so at certain times their shoulders brush each other.

After a few minutes of dancing, he gives Jisung the okay. The youngest takes his cue and dances his way with his partner closer to Jeno and Ms. Valleau.

All it takes is one casual brush.

Jeno notices it immediately. Her hand that is behind his shoulder is lighter on him. He no longer feels the cool scratch of the bracelet through his jacket.

He doesn’t fail to notice Jisung dancing away, something shiny going inside his pocket as he turns his partner around.

_ “Bracelet acquired,” _ Jisung says in his earpiece, partner not noticing that he spoke.

_ “Good. Now let’s end this show with a bang,” _ Renjun says.

The part Jeno likes the best: causing a scene. Jaemin really has rubbed off on him.

“Ms. Valleau, if you don’t mind I’d like to stop for a drink,” he says to her.

“Not at all, I’d like one as well,” she replies.

_ “Donghyuck is in place,” _ Renjun says.

The two stop dancing even though the music keeps going. They head back to the outskirts of the room where the servers stand with drinks and where Donghyuck is casually standing. Another non-verbal understanding is made as Jeno and Donghyuck make eye contact. Donghyuck quickly flashes him the sight of the case and it’s clear is all they need now is for her to pick a drink.

Jeno takes one non-alcoholic drink for himself as Ms. Valleau grabs a glass of wine. 

Before she can take a sip though, Jeno speaks.

“Oh Ms. Valleau, your dress is crumpled a bit from people bumping into you,” he says.

She immediately moved the wine glass away from her mouth and holds it away as she looks down at her dress. Courtesy of Mark, who was also dancing in the crowd, her dress has risen and stuck in an unflattering way. And due to her being so concerned about her looks, she instantly goes to fix it.

As the glass is held away from her, Donghyuck drops the tab in the case in her drink, reaching for his own glass with one hand and secretly dropping the tab with the other since she is still near the servers. His face is turned away from the crowd and the servers pay him no mind thanks to the beautiful woman in front of them. When he grabs his glass, he walks away, pocketing the empty case.

Finally, Ms. Valleau finishes fixing her dress with one hand.

“Thank you, I did not realize how many times we bumped into someone,” she says.

She brings her glass back toward her. Jeno reacts.

“Don’t drink that!” He exclaims.

She stops once more and he moves closer to her. He makes a show out of sniffing her drink and scrunching up his nose.

“There is something in that drink. The smell is funny and too strong,” he says.

She takes a smell of the drink herself and notices that he is right.

“Mon Dieu! You’re correct!” She says.

She puts the glass down on the table behind her and Jeno gasps.

“Ms. Valleau, weren’t you wearing a bracelet earlier?” He asks with false worry in his voice.

She looks down at her wrist with wide eyes.

And then she screams.

The music stops abruptly and everyone turns toward the scream. Ms. Valleau is now panicking and waving her wrist as if that will bring the bracelet back.

“I’ve been robbed! There’s a thief here!” She shouts.

Her words cause people to whisper, wondering what she’s going on about. 

Mark pushes through the crowd and stops in front of the two.

“What’s wrong?” He asks.

“We were dancing and we stopped to get a drink. But then we noticed that her drink smelled weird and something was probably added to it. When she put down the contaminated drink, I noticed that her bracelet was gone,” Jeno explains ‘worriedly’ in Korean.

By now, everyone is listening in and whispers turn into murmurs.

“Where’s her drink?” Mark asks.

Jeno points to the drink behind them and Mark takes a look at it. When he brings it towards him, he makes a sour face.

“There’s definitely something in this,” he says in English.

His confirmation makes Valleau even more riled.

“Someone tried to poison me. It wasn’t enough that they took my beautiful bracelet, they tried to kill me as well,” she says dramatically.

She gives drama queens Jaemin and Donghyuck a run for their money. She’s seriously putting a performance on for this crowd, loving the attention even if it’s at her own expense.

“Are you missing anything as well?” Mark asks Jeno.

Jeno acts as if he’s never thought to look and starts checking over himself. He freezes when he looks at his wrist.

“My watch is missing!” He cries out in English.

His missing watch is sitting faithfully with Valleau’s missing bracelet, taken only moments before they even began dancing. Jisung’s quick hands took it off of him without the slightest clue to anyone else. Though, he wouldn’t have minded if it was stolen. He hates that watch with a passion.

But to the crowd right now, two people were robbed at this event just now and that’s a big thing.

“This event is filled with thieves. They take our money and then they steal our belongings!” Valleau shouts.

At this, Mrs. Lee makes her way to the shouting French lady, Jaemin walking behind her.

“Now now, Ms. Valleau, let’s not throw accusations around. We’ll find your bracelet,” she says in an attempt to calm the other woman down.

Ms. Valleau was not having that though.

“I will not cease! I was stolen from and was almost drugged. Your son was stolen from. This is an outrage! I will never deal with these people in this room again if they cannot plan a safe event!” She says.

Her words get the murmurs to turn to loud agreements. People are now checking their belongings, some falsely saying they’re missing something as well. People turn to each other with accusing glances. 

“Security will search the room for your bracelet and my son’s watch. It will be found,” Mrs. Lee says.

But that does nothing to calm the “distraught” lady. She continues to shout about the injustice of it all and how she was only invited to become someone else’s target.

And everyone else joins her in her show.

Mrs. Lee goes over to Jeno and wraps her arms around him as if she was hugging him.

“Leave now before they try to use you to make this a bigger issue. This is getting out of control,” she says in his ear.

His safety and well being is not a concern. Her reputation is.

He wraps his arms around her in return and with him being taller than her, it makes it look like a really intimate moment.

“I’ll take my friends out of here and see if their parents were the cause for this to ruin your deal. Someone in this room outdid us, mother; I’m sure you want to find out who,” he replies.

If there’s one thing his mother claims him for, it’s his understanding of the importance of being in the spotlight and looking good. 

“That’s my boy. Do what you can and then stay out of the way. You’ve received enough attention for tonight,” she says.

She means he received enough negative attention for tonight.

They let go of each other and Jeno turns to Jaemin and Mark near him. He grabs Jaemin’s arm with a knowing look. Mark walks ahead of them, acting like crowd control, as Jaemin walks with Jeno as support. They walk out of the crowd, few people paying attention to them now that his mother has begun speaking again and the other parents are joining in.

The three reach the outskirts of the crowd and pick up their pace. Donghyuck, Renjun, Chenle, and Jisung are already waiting for them there.

“Our parents were already informed,” Jisung says to the arriving three.

“Good, then let’s get out of here,” Mark says.

They head to the exit, professionally keeping their excitement down. No matter how many times they do something like this, it always gives them a thrill like no other but they can’t celebrate yet. 

They’re almost at the coat check when Mark’s name is called.

All of them turn around to see Taeyong and Johnny, Donghyuck’s “nanny”, approaching them.

“Is something wrong?” Mark asks.

“Where are all of you going suddenly?” Taeyong asks.

Leave it to their parents’ secretaries to notice them leaving. That’s okay though, they plan for this stuff.

“Jeno’s mother told him to leave before the problem escalated. Our parents decided to send us with him to make sure he’s okay and so we’re not in the center of the problem,” Jaemin says, his arm still being held by Jeno.

Taeyong and Johnny give each other this look as if to say even they know that their parents’ priority is not their kids at the moment but have no problem pretending like it is.

“Alright then, we’ll drive you guys. It’s not safe for you all to leave by yourself after what just happened,” Johnny says.

The last thing they need and want is their nannies driving them to their houses. They still have to go back and get Ms. Valleau to buy her bracelet back from them. They can’t do that if they’re driven back by any one of the secretaries. If they get driven back by them then they’ll never have a chance to be alone.

“I think it’s better for you guys to stay with our parents,” Mark starts with a sigh, “they’re most likely going to need you during this mess and I doubt they would want you to leave with us. Our driver will take us back safely and we’ll be spending the time together. You always said there’s safety in numbers.”

Taeyong and Johnny don’t seem too ecstatic about the idea of letting them leave on their own but they do know that their parents will most likely need them. And no matter how you slice it, their bosses are the parents, not the children.

“Okay but let us know when you’re inside. All of you go to one person’s house and stay there. We’ll pick you up individually afterward,” Taeyong says hesitantly.

The seven boys promise to do so at the same time and then they are let go to go grab any belongings they might have checked in.

“Everyone has everything?” Mark asks with a look towards Jisung. 

They all say yes, Jisung giving him a thumbs up as well.

“Great, let’s go.”

They leave the premises and there’s a car already waiting for them outside. Renjun made sure to call for his driver beforehand so when it was time to leave, they wouldn’t have to wait.

The ride to Jaemin’s house, their unofficial official base, is calm and silent but with a shared energy in the air. The closer they get, the more excited they become.

Finally, they reach his house.

They enter in, Renjun sending the driver away and Mark letting Taeyong know that they made it safely. Once those two are done with that, everyone looks at each other with excited grins.

“ANOTHER WIN FOR US!” Donghyuck shouts.

They all begin cheering as Jisung holds up the bracelet this entire night was about.

“It’s even flashier up close. I know she’ll be willing to pay a pretty won for this,” Chenle says, looking at the bracelet.

“While we’re at it, we should sell Jeno’s ugly watch too,” Renjun says.

“Oh please do. I hate that watch so much, I don’t care how much my parents paid for it,” Jeno responds.

He made sure to wear his least favorite watch for this event. He couldn’t care less if it was gone.

“You guys think they’re still going at it back there?” Jaemin asks with a smirk.

“I’m almost sure of it. With the scene she was beginning to put on, there’s no way the crowd could calm down that quickly no matter how persuasive our parents are,” Mark says.

“Guess we’ll have to wait to call her about the bracelet then,” Jisung says.

“Oh don’t worry, we’ll call before we’re picked up. She won’t stay much longer once security can’t find the bracelet and even our parents are smart enough to know you can’t search potential business partners, especially not on the basis of theft,” Renjun replies.

By the end of the night, they will have made a profit and their parents will have lost future profits. Though they’re rich already, there’s only so much of their equipment they can buy with that money before it looks suspicious. But when they get money on these missions, they can buy as much as they want. They even have a secret account for money earned this way and everything they buy is paid with cash or under a fake identity. Tonight will give them much earned and needed money.

“Thank you, Ms. Amélie Valleau.”


	4. NO ONE will take it away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mention of sexual assault brought up in chapter 1

Life wouldn’t be life if it didn’t throw a curveball when you least expect it.

It’s been about two months since DREAM’s last job—exposing the illegal work of one of their parents' secret clients and robbing them blind while they were at it—and everything seemed to be going great.

Their parents were none the wiser about their activities. None of their parents realized how they were slowly being ruined, their legitimate business being the only thing that’s safe from DREAM’s plans. After all, they need their parents to continue making money if they want to keep the life they have now.

Each time they pulled off a job, pride and excitement filled them. Not even their parents’ illegal work is as flawless as this. The very things their parents didn’t want them in, they excel at. They finally found something to fill their boring days and prove their parents wrong in. Being DREAM became their excitement and joy in life and no one could threaten that.

Or so they believed.

_ Knock knock knock _

The seven boys turn towards the door at the sound. 

It’s a calm Saturday afternoon and they’re once again at Jaemin’s house. It has practically become their house since that’s where they can be together and be who they are without any disturbance. They were just playing video games, Jisung beating them all, when the knock came.

“Who could that be?” Jaemin asks in confusion.

He gets up nonetheless and goes to the door. He looks through the peephole and is surprised to see who it is.

“Guys, it’s all of our nannies,” he says.

Everyone straightens up immediately as they try to rack their brains as to why all of the secretaries are here all of a sudden.

Jaemin opens the door and tries not to look so confused.

“May we enter Jaemin-ah?” Yuta asks.

Jaemin nods and steps aside to let them in, locking the door behind them all. Sure enough, all seven of them are here.

Lee Taeyong, Mark’s parent’s secretary and advisor.

Dong Sicheng, Renjun’s parent’s secretary and advisor.

Kim Doyoung, Jeno’s mother’s secretary and advisor.

Seo Young Ho, or his English name Johnny as he prefers to be called, Donghyuck’s parent’s secretary and advisor.

Nakamoto Yuta, Jaemin’s parents’ secretary and advisor.

Qian Kun, Chenle’s parent’s secretary and advisor.

Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul, or more commonly known as Ten, Jisung’s parents’ secretary and advisor.

Never before has all seven of them been gathered in one room without their bosses there as well. They receive so much work, it’s almost impossible for them all to be free at the same time.

Something isn’t right.

“Is everything okay? Why are you guys here?” Mark asks, understandably a bit worried.

“We wanted to talk with you guys,” Taeyong says.

A simultaneous shiver runs down their spine at the words. This must be what it feels like to have a healthy fear of a parent-like figure.

“Sure. Just in case though, we didn’t do it and we haven’t skipped an activity in a while now,” Donghyuck says.

The last time their elders talked to them, individually though, it was about them skipping an activity their parents planned for them. In their secret defense, they had a job to do.

“It isn’t about your planned activities,” Johnny replies.

The word ‘planned’ gives them an uneasy feeling for some reason. The serious looks the older seven have do not give them comfort. They’re all wondering the same thing: what did they do?

“Okay, then what is this about?” Jisung asks.

None of the elders move to take a seat so clearly, this isn’t one of those “we’re worried about your well being” type of talks. This is a much more serious talk.

“You guys have been up to something lately,” Yuta says.

For the second time ever in this house, the air stops moving at just a few words. It’s been over a year since that has happened. If their breaths hitched at the same time then everyone is ignoring it.

“What do you mean?” Chenle asks, trying to shake the nerves in his voice.

They’ve been asked about their activities before and never felt this anxious. They have been able to lie straight to their parents’ faces after being asked where they’ve been and didn’t feel an ounce of nervousness. But right now? Right now, their hearts feel like they’re about to jump into their throats.

“Your parents may not notice it but we have. Ever since Mark’s first Korean instructor died, you guys have been acting differently. You’ve been together more often and spending time here,” Ten says.

Now, they’re really feeling nervous. If their elders have been noticing a change since that time then that isn’t good. They couldn’t possibly know, right?

“We’re friends hyung, we’re supposed to spend time together. Jaemin was getting lonely here again so we decided to spend most of our time here. It’s not like our parents need us elsewhere anyway,” Donghyuck says, trying to bring a sense of normalcy to the conversation.

Wherever this conversation is going, they do not like it at all. Their hearts betray them by beating faster than ever before. Not even their first and only murder made them feel like this.

“Say Jeno-ah, whatever happened to that watch that was stolen at the last charity ball your parents had?” Doyoung asks.

The sudden question throws Jeno off guard. He forgot about that watch after they sold the ugly thing.

Jeno looks to the others to make sure he’s not the only one who’s thrown off by the question. It’s clear to see that he’s not.

“I don’t know, they never found it remember?” He replies.

“Really? That’s strange because Ms. Valleau was sold back her bracelet from the thief. She was outraged at how high a price she had to pay that she made sure to call and complain once more about how she will never do business here again. Don’t you find it strange that the thief would sell back her item but not yours?” Doyoung says.

The speed of the youngers’ hearts all speed up together. They didn’t know that Ms. Valleau informed anyone that her bracelet was returned. They thought once she went back to France, she wouldn’t have any more connections with any one of their parents.

“Maybe they knew she’d pay more money for her item? Anyone can buy another watch I guess,” Jeno says though he doesn’t know how convincing that sounded.

Silence takes place in the room and it’s completely nerve-wracking for the youngers. No one speaking is more anxiety raising then the sudden questions that were being asked.

Their hearts are now officially in their throats and it’s hard to breathe. The tension is high for a reason they don’t know. Or maybe they do but they just don’t want to acknowledge it.

Finally, someone speaks.

“Tell us the truth. You boys were behind that theft, weren’t you?” Taeyong asks, completely serious.

The tension snaps.

In the blink of an eye, gone are the group of young friends fearing over their parent-like figures and replacing them is DREAM.

The secretaries all freeze when six weapons are suddenly present in the room. 

Jaemin from behind them and Jeno from the side of them each with a small tranquilizer gun in hand—ones they’ve hidden in easy to reach but hard to notice places in the living room—aimed at them. 

Chenle and Jisung wield flat throwing knives in their hands ready to be launched. 

Donghyuck wears tactical hard knuckle gloves—the pair he was excited to receive and definitely know how to use—ready to move.

Renjun gracefully spins easy-to-hide throwing needles between his fingers that are sharp enough to puncture.

A serious look falls on Mark’s face as he looks at the elders in the room.

“I’m going to ask you all to sit down,” he says calmly.

The elders look at each other and then to the youngers who haven’t moved a centimeter from their positions and whose facial expressions are deathly composed. The power table has turned and they have to go with the direction.

So they sit down.

As they move to sit, the weapons follow their movements. Mark stands in front of them with an air of leadership they’ve never felt from him before.

“Alright, we’re sitting down now. Now can you tell us what’s going on here?” Taeyong says, making direct eye contact with Mark.

From Taeyong’s peripheral view, he notices Sicheng slowly reach for his phone. If he can distract them long enough, maybe they can call for some help.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you hyung. Your phones are practically useless in here because I’m blocking all cell waves. I can also prevent recording if you try to record this,” Renjun says, also seeming to catch Sicheng’s movements

The second Doyoung started asking Jeno about the watch, Renjun decided to kill all cell waves and the likes just in case the conversation took a turn, which it did. This house is a dead zone and nothing is coming in or going out from this place.

Sicheng stops moving and leaves his phone in his pocket. No one else on the couch makes an attempt to move after that.

“You wanted to talk, so let’s talk. Your phones are useless and there’s no way out of here unless you want to test their aim,” Mark says.

“Why are you doing this?” Kun asks, taking a look at Chenle and his knives that haven’t lowered at all.

Chenle doesn’t like the look he receives from the older but he tries to pay it no mind as he stands his position.

“Believe us, we don’t actually want to do this. But you’re crossing waters we can’t afford for you to cross,” Jaemin responds.

“So what, you’re going to kill us?” Yuta asks, coming out from his mouth as a rough sound.

The idea of harming the elders send an unwanted feeling through the group. While they would do so if it meant protecting DREAM, they don’t like the idea of it.

“We’re not going to harm you as long as you don’t force us to. We’re going to talk about this and explain what’s going on,” Mark says.

This gets Donghyuck to look away from those sitting on the couch and look at Mark.

“Are you sure about this? What if they tell someone?” He asks.

It’s an important question, one they can’t afford to overlook. If they explain everything and word gets out then DREAM is done for and separated or drastic measures will have to be taken on their end. Neither is an option they want to take.

“Leaving them without information is just as risky. We’ll deal with that issue if we get to it,” Mark responds.

No one else in DREAM asks any further questions. Mark has been their leader for a year and a half now; they have trust in what he decides.

“Now, I’m going to explain but they’re going to keep their weapons up for safety reasons. Let’s make this go smoothly for all of our sakes,” Mark says to those on the couch.

No one sitting responds to the comment, deciding it better to wait for the explanation.

Mark takes it as his cue to continue.

“We’re a group called DREAM. Yes, we were the ones to commit that theft that night. It was easy to do and she was a perfect target, easily distracted by pretty things and flattery. We’ve been doing jobs like those and others for about a year and a half now and as you can see, we’re good at what we do. We didn’t think anyone would catch on to us, we’re surprised you guys did,” he says.

“So you’re saying you’re criminals just like your parents,” Johnny interrupts.

Donghyuck snorts at the comment but leaves the reply for Mark.

“Yes and no. I guess to the outside, yes we are. But we differ a lot from our parents. For one, they do what they do for money and don’t care who it affects. We target people in the world of our parents, like Ms. Valleau who killed her husband for insurance money. Two, we’re better than our parents. They’re sloppy and have other people do their dirty work. We’re clean, we do it by ourselves, and have never been caught no matter what we do. Until now that is,” Mark replies.

“What, you think you guys are vigilantes or something?” Yuta asks.

“That’s too noble of a title for us,” Jaemin chimes in.

After the first few times they did a job, they sat down and asked each other why they are doing what they were doing. After killing Mark’s scum of an instructor, there wasn’t much motivation to it. Or so they thought. They realized that the thrill of a job was more than just some adrenaline rush. They were doing something together as friends and succeeding at it. They were excelling in their parents’ game. They had something they could call their own and do what they want with it.

Yes, being DREAM was fun to them but it gave them something to do other than the scheduled activities their parents scheduled for them and video games. It gave them something to be other than the children of a bunch of rich folks. It gave them something to live for.

“How did you figure out it was us anyway? We left no clues behind and we’re sure of it,” Renjun asks.

If they left clues behind then they would have been approached much sooner than now. So how did this happen?

“We told you, you all were acting differently. We know you well enough to see how you’ve changed. It’s been going on for months now. But then the ball happened and Jeno was ‘helping’ his mother with a client, Jaemin talked to Jeno’s mother, Chenle suddenly wanted to play the piano in front of people, and Jisung decided to ask someone to dance. Your parents aren’t around enough to know but we knew that was all out of the ordinary. And then Jeno was suddenly missing a watch and you all left without any issues despite there being a thief on the loose. It was strange but when Ms. Valleau called Jeno’s mother to rant about the bracelet, we had our suspicions,” Doyoung explains.

While it’s a hit to the pride that they were actually caught for once, a strange feeling warms their heart also. The seven people on the couch watch and notice them so much, they were able to find abnormalities in their behavior without any problems. They paid enough attention to seven boys who were in no way related to them to spot when something was off.

No one has paid them that amount of attention.

“Damn, our parents really must not care about us then if they don’t even find the fact that Jeno didn’t get his watch back as strange,” Donghyuck says.

The comment is meant casually, passing comments they always say, but there’s something about it this time that comes across a bit more...lonely.

“Is that why you’re doing this? Is this for your parents’ attention?” Sicheng asks.

The question reminds them of feelings that they’ve grown used to ignoring. Feelings that meant nothing to them once DREAM started.

“No. We haven’t done something for our parents’ attention since we were little kids. We don’t want them to know what we do. Just because we’re doing something similar to them doesn’t mean it’s to be like them or it’s for them. If anything has to do with them then it’s the fact that we like being better than them at their own game and that’s really as far as it goes,” Mark responds.

If there’s a familiar bitterness in his voice as he speaks, no one brings it up. It’s well known that bringing up anything having to deal with the boys’ relationship with their parents is picking at old wounds that never healed properly.

“Then why are you guys doing this? What started all of this?” Taeyong asks.

For the first time since this conversation started, the six weapon holders all take their eyes off the people on the couch. They look to Mark with an indescribable look on their faces. Mark doesn’t respond immediately though, his jaw tightening in thought.

“We don’t have to tell them that,” Jisung says.

“Yeah, we explained everything else anyway,” Chenle adds.

At this moment, even the elders realize that they must have asked a sensitive question. They look between the shared tense look of the youngers, wondering if they should take back the question if it is as troubling as their looks hint it is.

“Renjun,” Mark finally calls.

“Yeah?”

“Grab your laptop and bring up  _ that _ video.”

Donghyuck completely turns away from those on the couch, fighting stance gone, and faces Mark.

“Are you crazy? You don’t have to do that. You know you can’t handle that,” he says.

Telling them is one thing but playing the video is another. When Renjun found that video a year ago, he saved it and then wiped it from the cameras for good. If anyone else would have seen that video, the hospital and police wouldn’t have been so quick to rule it as an unfortunate death. Renjun doesn’t know what strange force made him keep that video but he kept it and it just sits there on a flash drive.

Mark has never seen it though, even though he knows it exists.

“If they want to know about us then they should know why this happened, right? Besides, they should find out that there’s always a consequence for being too inquisitive,” Mark replies, voice cracking a bit towards the end.

Renjun sighs, lowering his weapon and grabbing his laptop that he brings with him everywhere. He plugs in his flash drive and goes to the hidden folder that he always pretends never exists. In it lies a single video.

“Are you sure about this?” Renjun asks one last time.

Mark nods even though you can see the emotions in his eyes.

With his confirmation, Renjun opens the video. He places the laptop on the coffee table in front of the couch.

He presses play.

The video starts off easily, it’s just Mark and his old Korean instructor in a room. They’re finishing up their lesson and Mark is packing up to go.

But then it changes.

The instructor grabs him by the wrist and tells Mark that he’s been doing poorly in his studies lately. He says that Mark needs to stay longer to make up for the bad work or else his parents will be informed. Although hesitant, Mark puts his bag back down and agrees to stay a bit longer.

That’s when the instructor begins to talk about his wife. He says how they’ve been arguing a lot lately and how she blames his work for all of their problems. He says that she won’t even sleep in the same bed as him anymore let alone entertain him. It can clearly be seen that Mark is becoming uncomfortable but the instructor continues on. He says how he deserves a payment in return for the sacrifice he makes to teach Mark.

Mark, wanting to get out of the uncomfortable situation, apologizes and asks how much of a bonus would the man like. But the instructor says he doesn’t want money. Mark is confused thoroughly and tries to back away from the man.

It happens much too quickly.

The man has Mark pinned to the ground and is running his hands all over his body. The next thing you know, Mark’s pants and underwear are down and the man has his mouth everywhere on Mark while his hand is down his own pants.

From here on out the only sounds in the video are Mark’s screams and the instructor’s moans. 

“STOP!” Taeyong says after two minutes of watching and listening to Mark scream for help.

Renjun gladly pauses the video, skin already looking pale from the visual reminder of what Mark went through.

Chenle looks as if he is about to throw up just like he did the first time he found out about this but Jisung standing next to him seems to give him some support.

Somehow, Jaemin manages to stay on his feet despite feeling his knees go weak once the screams started. It’s a miracle. Or maybe it’s Jeno’s hand on the small of his back that’s helping in that regard.

Donghyuck has been staring at Mark the entire time. He’ll never forget how Mark came back that night. He’ll never forget that vulnerable look in his eyes for as long as he lives. He’ll do anything to make sure he never sees that look again.

“Stopping already? It’s only been a few minutes. That went on for two hours hyung,” Mark says with a weak voice, lost look slightly touching his eyes once again.

Those on the couch look worse off than the others in the room. They feel sick to their cores and shaken to their roots.

“Two hours?” Taeyong asks in scared disbelief.

Mark nods with a shaky laugh.

“Two hours of that I went through. When I came here afterward, I immediately went and burned my clothes. I was so weak and shaken by it, I didn’t know what to do. Chenle threw up when he found out and Jaemin almost fainted but landed on Jeno. Renjun was ready to fight someone but Jisung kept him here. Hyuck held me until I calmed down, which took many hours. It rocked our perfect sheltered world. We thought our parents not paying us any attention was the worse we’ll ever experience; man were we wrong. This...this destroyed us,” he says.

Fleeting glances are made to the youngers as if everyone on the couch is worried about those reactions happening now. What are they to do when something like that was told to them?

“So you know what we did?” Mark asks suddenly.

No one responds so Mark continues.

“We killed him. It was surprisingly Jisung’s idea first but eventually, we all agreed on it. Our parents raised us to deal with people who forget their place or when they do you wrong. That man did both and he took away my control, so we took it back. We killed him and it was our first ever time doing anything like that but we did it so perfectly. Till this day, his death is written down as an unfortunate accident. We did that,” he says, eyes slowly clearing up as he remembers what they did.

They killed him and then went back and partied. They celebrated their success and in the midst of it, they felt closer than ever. What’s more team building than committing a murder together? Nothing. Nothing is and it brought them closer to each other as friends.

“You want to know why we created DREAM? It was created by an act of friendship and desperation, something to save us from the attack life threw at us. We kept it though because it became us. It gave us an identity and something to do. It gave us somewhere to be in a new reality we had to face. It gave us something that was us and not our parents. We became better at something and we were able to make it with our own twist. DREAM is all we have that’s completely and only ours and we won’t let  _ anyone _ take it away from us. Not even you guys,” Mark says, voice finally regaining its strength by the end of his words.

His posture straightens as his resolve is made firm. And he’s not the only one who is affected by his words.

The other DREAM members lose the weak feeling in their bones that the video gave them at the words. Their grip tightens on their weapons and their looks strengthened with their feelings for what they have. It’s simple for all of them.

DREAM is family and no one can threaten that family.

“So hyungs, you guys know our story now. What are you all going to do?” Mark says.

Those sitting on the couch look at each other with unsure looks. What are they going to do now?

“Let us talk about it with each other without a bunch of weapons being pointed at us,” Johnny says.

“And give you all a chance to run and tell?” Donghyuck says disbelievingly.

While they could still try and stop them from leaving without weapons, they’d prefer not to leave this to physical capabilities. 

“We won’t run, we just need to talk about it,” Doyoung responds.

The boys look at each other as if they should actually take their word for it.

“Come on guys, let’s give them a space to talk,” Mark says.

“You mean leave the room?” Jeno asks in surprise.

Mark nods.

“They say they won’t run so we’ll give them that trust,” he replies.

Without hesitation, they lower their weapons. If Mark puts that much trust in them then they will too. Besides, deep down inside they want to believe that no one would run away.

“We’ll give you guys ten minutes,” Mark says.

They then leave the room and head upstairs to Jaemin’s room, making sure to close the door behind them.

“What do you think they’re going to do?” Chenle asks.

Donghyuck and Jisung drop on the bed at the same time, both releasing a sigh.

“I have no idea,” Donghyuck replies.

It’s actually a bit worrying thinking about what’s going to happen next. What if they decide to try and tell someone like the parents? Obviously, they can’t let that happen but what would they do? This isn’t the same as with Mark’s old instructor. It’s not as if they won’t feel bad if they hurt, or even worse killed, those sitting downstairs. They actually have a connection with them and they’re probably the closest thing to family, other than each other, that they have.

It worries them about what could happen but they can’t do anything but wait.

“I know we should be discussing what we should do in case anything happens but like did anyone else feel that immediate connection when we all pulled weapons out at the same time? I forgot that we even hid tranquilizers in this house but it was an immediate reaction to grab it and use it. I don’t even know when I started reaching for it honestly,” Jaemin says.

“Actually, yeah I know what you mean. I know I keep the needles on me just in case but half the time I forget where they’re hidden in each outfit. But once that question came out it was second nature to just reach for them,” Renjun replies.

“Same here. I forgot Lele and I had knives on us. They were just out before we even thought about it,” Jisung says.

“Psh rookies, I always know my gloves are on me,” Donghyuck says with a bragging tone.

Mark throws one of Jaemin’s plushies at Donghyuck’s head with a laugh.

“Yeah right, I’m sure you’re just like everyone else and only remembered them right then and there,” he replies.

“Leave it to Hyuck to try and act like he isn’t part of the group. I think we all had that instant reaction once we thought DREAM was being threatened,” Jeno says.

The only thing they can call it is an instant reaction. It’s as if none of them thought and only acted. There was a threat and they wanted it gone. It’s amazing how in sync they were with that.

“Yeah, it felt like we were in a movie. Only Mark hyung didn’t grab a weapon or anything,” Chenle says.

“That’s because he was the badass leader who used intimidation as his weapon,” Jaemin responds.

Mark chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck.

“I don’t know about that. I guess my immediate reaction was to get the situation under control before anything happened. I don’t even know if I remembered to carry a weapon on me today, or any day that’s not a mission day,” he says.

While they’re all for peace and do not resort to violence easily, it was agreed to carry at least something that could be used as a weapon for protection, minus firearms. They’re in dangerous work, they never know what may happen. Plus, it makes them feel cool; as if they’re like official agents or gangsters or something.

“I guess this just shows that we’re more in sync than we knew. We really are the best type of team,” Renjun says.

“Hell yeah we are,” Donghyuck says.

And no one can tell them otherwise.

“Come on guys, it’s been ten minutes now. Let’s go see what happens now,” Mark says.

They get up and leave Jaemin’s room. They head downstairs, trying to stay calm though they are worried about what is about to happen.

When they get back to the living room, they’re happy to see all seven secretaries still there.

“So, have you decided what you guys are going to do?” Mark asks.

This is it. Let’s see where this goes.

“We have. Let me make this clear, we don’t like what you boys are doing one bit. We especially don’t like you guys aiming weapons at us and keeping secrets like this. Your parents didn’t want you involved in anything like this, whatever their reasons,” Taeyong starts.

That’s never a good way to start. The boys don’t even try to hide their frowns.

“We didn’t ask for a lecture,” Donghyuck mumbles under his breath.

If Taeyong heard it, he decided to let it slide.

“This is dangerous and illegal. If you ever slip up or get caught, you’re all going to be in a lot of trouble that your parents won’t even try to get you out of,” he continues.

Taeyong really isn’t pulling any punches here they see. 

Though they knew it already, it kinda does make them feel a certain way that their own parents wouldn’t help them get out of trouble. They’re seriously on their own here.

“That being said, we want you guys to check in with us from time to time,” Taeyong says.

This gets the seven boys to snap their heads up in surprise.

“What?” They say at the same time.

They must have not heard correctly.

“He said we want you guys to check in with us from time to time. This clearly means something to you, something important. Terrible circumstances pushed you all and all it took was one scarring moment to shove you over. But you guys found something to make up for what you lost and/or never had. We can’t take that away from you no matter how much it bothers us,” Ten says.

“So we want you guys to tell us every now and then how things are going. While you guys make a great team on your own, it doesn’t hurt to have someone else watching your backs,” Johnny says.

The boys stand in shock.

They’re going to go along with it? They’re going to watch out for them?

“You guys mean it? You won’t try to stop us?” Renjun asks.

“We mean it. You guys can continue what you’re doing. We won’t tell anyone,” Sicheng replies.

“But why?” Jaemin asks.

It’s not that they aren’t grateful for this, they’re extremely grateful, but it just doesn’t make sense to them. If they hate what they’re doing so much, why would they watch out for them?

“Because we care about you brats. Despite everything, the past year and a half have been the happiest we’ve ever seen you guys in all our time of working with your parents. Clearly, you guys mean a lot to each other and so does your work. Besides, if you guys can all simultaneously pull out weapons with no hesitation at just the idea of getting caught and or separated, then this must mean a lot to you,” Yuta says.

They care? The words ‘we care about you’ have never been told to them before, at least not as far as they can remember. They’ve been called good boys, a presentable son, and ‘my child’ before but that’s the most they’ve gotten. That was the closest to care they were going to get and as a kid, it meant the world to them. As they got older though it just reminded them of the distance that’s between them and their parents.

But now, people who haven’t even known them their entire lives, just told them that they care about them enough to let them continue on with their illegal activities and even help them all because it makes them happy.

It means so much more than they thought it could.

“Oh my, are you guys tearing up?” Kun asks.

The boys all wipe at their eyes, Donghyuck and Jaemin doing it more furiously than the others.

“No, Jaemin was just messing around with a mixture in his room and it made our eyes burn. That’s all,” Donghyuck replies.

The elders give the boys soft smiles in return. In a shared thought, they move forward and hug their respective charges. And for the boys' sake, they’ll pretend that they didn’t hear the sniffles and hitches coming from the youngers.

These boys may be able to rob someone blind and not get caught but even they need a little love and support.


	5. Ahn Si-woo, you're going down

It’s not every day that Jaemin’s front door suddenly bursts open.

But today it happened and the six boys inside were not expecting it.

They jump in surprise at the sound, only to see Renjun run in with an excited look on his face, laptop clutched in hand.

“Jesus Christ Renjun, you can’t come in like that,” Mark says.

“Late might I add,” Donghyuck says.

Renjun throws the younger a look but it fades away quickly, excitement outweighing it.

“I got caught up and you guys shouldn’t leave the door unlocked but that’s not important. What’s important is what I have to show you guys,” he says, sitting in the middle of the couch.

He sets his laptop down on his lap and opens it up. His fingers move quicker than they’ve seen from him in a while.

“Slow down there, the poor keys don’t deserve that abuse,” Jaemin jokes.

“Oh shut up,” Renjun responds with a chuckle.

The six move in closer to their techie, curious about what he could be so excited about. It’s hard for them to tell though because multiple screens are popping up and closing as he types so quickly.

“Why are you so excited?” Jisung asks.

Renjun looks up briefly with a bright look on his face.

“Because I finally have a chance at getting my hands on Ahn Si-woo’s tech,” Renjun says, his eyes practically turning into stars.

The six look around at each other with confused looks. They all mouth ‘who’ to each other, clearly not understanding their tech-loving friend’s response.

“Uh for the non-computer geeks in the room can you please explain further?” Donghyuck says.

Again, a look is thrown at him with little malice in it before Renjun continues what he’s doing.

“Ahn Si-woo is one of the best programmers there is. His technology rivals my parents and even surpasses it in certain cases, though my parents like to hide that fact. The only thing is it’s impossible to hire him and impossible to even catch a glimpse of his tech. It goes for high money that my parents are much too proud to pay for. I’ve wanted his tech since I learned about programming. I even asked for his programming for my birthday when I was eight but clearly, that didn’t happen,” Renjun explains.

“Let me guess, your parents have tried to hire him before and he told them no,” Jeno says.

“My parents wanted him to make themselves look better; it’s a family thing for wanting this man’s work. He didn’t even want to step foot in my parents’ office though saying that their products aren’t real technology. Since then, anything to do with him is strictly banned in my house,” Renjun replies.

And ‘banned’ is the light way of putting it. You would have thought the man was the devil with the way his parents deal with anything having to do with him. Though they are greedy business people who are always trying to be the best, they do take genuine pride in their technology. It isn’t as great as it was when they first created it but it’s still really good. The man’s casual and somehow pleasantly sounding insult really struck a nerve for them. 

Renjun wishes he could insult someone and sound that polite at the same time as he did.

“Ouch harsh,” Chenle says.

“Very but that’s okay because now I have a chance at getting what I’ve wanted for years now,” Renjun replies.

He seems to finally get whatever he was searching for on his laptop because his hands slow down with what they were typing.

“How so?” Mark asks.

Renjun adjusts his screen to make sure everyone can see it clearly. On it seems to be an invitation list.

“In three weeks, Jung Jaehyun will be hosting a big fancy dinner,” Renjun starts.

“Wait, you mean  _ THE _ Jung Jaehyun? The model who not even my mother could convince to work for her? The one whose heart is bigger than his body? That Jung Jaehyun?” Jeno cuts in.

Renjun nods in reply.

“Yes that Jung Jaehyun. Anyway, he’s hosting this big dinner at his friend’s, Moon Taeil, restaurant,”

“THE Moon Taeil? One of the youngest but best restaurant owners around? My parents went to his restaurant for their anniversary and that’s saying something,” Jaemin says, cutting Renjun off again.

Renjun nods once again.

“Yes, that Moon Taeil. They’ve been friends for years now apparently so it was really easy to book the restaurant. So, he’s hosting a dinner at the restaurant and all these people are going to be there. This is the invitation list,” Renjun says, gesturing to the list on his screen.

“Is that musician Xiao Dejun? And young actor Wong Kunhang? Oh my god, even Liu YangYang is going to be there! How did Jung Jaehyun get them to come all the way from China for this?” Chenle says in surprise, leaning heavily over Renjun’s shoulder.

From what they can all partially see, there are some pretty well-known people on this list. They aren’t super celebrities but they sure aren’t nobodys. It’s a nice in between. 

“Can you guys stop cutting me off? Yes I know, the list is surprising now let me continue explaining. It’s a dinner with an actual noble cause one and two everyone knows someone on this list and everyone knows Jaehyun-ssi or Taeil-ssi. Ahn Si-woo is also going to be in attendance, though I think he bought his way in. Either way, he’s going to be there and this is my chance,” Renjun says.

He’s wanted to take a glimpse and break down this technology for years now. Now he finally has a chance to acquire it.

“I know you’re really excited about this but you can’t just steal someone’s technology because you want it. That’s not how WE do things,” Mark says.

Though again they wouldn’t call themselves vigilantes or anything of that nature, they still only target those who deserve to be targeted. They target people who have done some stuff that they think no one will notice and who think they’re untouchable. That’s what makes it fun after all. They never go after someone who they feel does not deserve it.

“Well yeah, I know that. I wouldn’t do that no matter how much I want it. So I did some research on him,” Renjun responds.

“Wait, you mean to say that you wanted this tech so badly that you went searching for something bad about this guy,” Donghyuck says.

For the third time today, Renjun gives him a look, though this one says ‘I’m going to punch you’ more than ‘hush up’ as the other two did. 

“Don’t question my motives and I won’t question yours. Don’t think I didn’t realize that you took those video games from that last job we did,” Renjun says.

Mark turns to Donghyuck with a half glare.

“You did what?” Mark says.

Donghyuck gives a shaky smile with his hands up slightly as if to say he’s innocent.

He isn’t.

“He’s making it sound bad. There were video games that they weren’t going to sell anymore and they didn’t have a count on how many games they had back there so I may have took two games. I swear it didn’t cause any risk for us,” Donghyuck explains.

Mark glances to Renjun for confirmation.

“He’s correct, no one noticed. I almost didn’t but I pay more attention to old stock than those workers do,” Renjun replies.

Mark looks back to Donghyuck, the younger giving an innocent smile.

“Fine but tell someone next time,” Mark says.

Donghyuck nods enthusiastically with a halo practically around his head. When Mark turns away though, Donghyuck gives Renjun a dirty look for telling. Renjun shrugs in response casually.

“Anyway like I was saying, he may be a great programmer but he isn’t clean. He was at risk for getting caught for tax evasion but he paid off the right people. Not only that but he has a habit of sabotaging anyone who has a chance of being a competitor for him. He hasn’t and can’t target my parents, he’d never succeed, but there are many others he has quietly ruined to stay on top,” Renjun says, continuing on.

It wasn’t hard to find dirt on Ahn, only took a bit of digging and hacking. While he looks up to the man’s programming he doesn’t care much for the man himself so it didn’t bother him to search for something bad.

“So that means there’s good cause to get his technology,” Jaemin says.

“Exactly. No guilt on our consciences and I finally get to have a look into what makes his technology so good,” Renjun says, stars for eyes coming back at the thought.

He can see the programming now. It would be the best time for him to break down the technology.

“Aww he looks so excited,” Chenle says to Jisung, the two snickering at their elder.

It’s been a while since they’ve seen him so excited.

“I take it as our parents are going then?” Jeno asks.

Renjun snorts.

“Heavens no. Ahn wouldn’t be caught dead in the same room as my parents. And I’m pretty sure your mother creeped out Jaehyun-ssi with her advancements last time,” Renjun says.

A shiver runs up all of their spines as they remember the sight of Mrs. Lee trying to get Jung Jaehyun as one of her models. It was disgusting.

“Makes sense but why aren’t ours going?” Jisung asks.

“I don’t know, maybe they’re too popular for this event. Honestly, this isn’t like one of our parents type of events anyway. It’s an event actually for a good cause and not to make more business partners and money,”  Renjun replies.

That’s not exactly their parents' cup of tea. Their main goal is advancement and if the event is not for that then there better be a hell of a good reason for disrupting their time with it.

“Then how are you planning to do this then? We’re good but we need to be on the inside if we want to succeed,” Jaemin says.

Someone has to be at the actual event for them to even start. They aren’t good enough to not actually be on the scene and do what they have to do.

“I know I was wondering that too when I first found out our parents weren’t invited. But check this out: Taeyong hyung, Sicheng hyung, and Doyoung hyung are all invited. Taeyong hyung and Sicheng hyung are good friends with Jaehyun-ssi and Doyoung hyung is good friends with Taeil-ssi,” Renjun responds.

“So you’re going to ask them to take us?” Mark questions.

Though the olders do know what they do and constantly check on them, they have never actually asked them for help in anything, not even help in convincing their parents on something even though the secretaries seem to do that anyway for them. Actually asking them this time to get them in is a big step on their part.

“Yes, it was the only thing I could come up with. While that would limit only me, you, and Jeno inside while the others work from outside, it’s better than nothing. Oh please, this is my only chance. I have to know his secrets, I just have to,” Renjun says, pleading to Mark.

Mark stares into Renjun’s pleading eyes and he knows he couldn’t say no to the younger boy when this has been a dream of his for years now.

“Okay, you can ask. We need a plan just in case they can’t take us in,” Mark replies.

Renjun lights up at the response.

“Yes! Only one more person to beg,” he says happily.

“I think he’s even happy about the begging part,” Jeno says jokingly.

Renjun doesn’t seem to hear it, or probably didn’t care really about it, because he immediately picks up his phone and dials Sicheng on speaker.

Sicheng picks up after the third ring.

“Hello?”

“Hi hyung,” Renjun says sweetly.

A long sigh is heard from the other side.

“What do you want Injunnie?” Sicheng says.

The six boys around Renjun snicker at the elder already knowing that Renjun wanted something.

“I don’t know what you mean. I’m just calling to check up on my favorite person. Mother and Father aren’t working you too hard right?” Renjun responds.

“You want me to take you and your friends to the dinner so you can take  _ his _ tech, don’t you,” Sicheng says in a straight voice.

You can practically hear the deadpan look he has on right now.

The others around the phone seem genuinely shocked that Sicheng knew what Renjun wanted without anything about it being brought up beforehand. Either Renjun has been talking about this around him or Sicheng really knows Renjun.

“Not all of them, just Mark and Jeno. Taeyong hyung and Doyoung hyung can take them. Please? You know how badly I wanted this for years now. I promise we’ll be on our best behavior and not cause a scene,” Renjun replies.

Another long sigh is heard from the other side. Sicheng mumbles something in Chinese and the few words heard causes Chenle to snicker.

“I’ll see what I can do. But do not do anything until I give you the ok,” Sicheng says.

Renjun silently celebrates after the first sentence Sicheng says. 

“Thank you, thank you, thank you. Oh thank you so much hyung. I’ll be good, I promise,” Renjun replies.

“I’m holding you to that. I’ll talk to you later, I have to get back to work now,” Sicheng says.

“Bye bye. Thank you, I love you,” Renjun says.

Sicheng chuckles through the phone but says bye nonetheless.

When the phone hangs up, Renjun lets out a loud shout of excitement.

“FINALLY!! AFTER YEARS AND YEARS OF WAITING I FINALLY GET A CHANCE!” He celebrates.

“I think he’d cry if we failed this job,” Donghyuck says behind his hand as if Renjun can’t hear him.

The others nod in agreement.

“He’d lock himself up with crappy Chinese movies and ice cream like Sicheng hyung taught him. You wouldn’t hear a Korean word out of his mouth until he cheers up,” Chenle says, not even pretending to say it so Renjun won’t hear.

This gets Renjun to stop his cheering and look at Chenle.

“Hey, you do the same thing. Don’t think I forgot about that marathon we had at your house with the three large tubs of ice cream that both our nannies went and bought for us,” he says.

Chenle’s cheeks dust a light red as he recalls that time. While it was good bonding time with the elder, they also both looked really pathetic throughout it.

“Man, Injunnie is exposing everyone today. Everyone let him enjoy his dream in peace,” Jaemin says.

“Thank you, Nana, at least someone is for me here,” Renjun says.

Mark makes an offended gesture saying, “Uh what about me?”

Renjun smiles and brushes the concern off casually.

“That’s a given, you’re always here for me,” he says.

“Suck up,” Donghyuck coughs into his hand.

Renjun raises a fist threateningly at the younger.

“You’re seriously pushing it today. I will end you and I’ll make sure to drag it out if you want to keep testing me,” he says.

Jaemin and Jeno chuckle at the threat and Donghyuck’s misfortune. All of them know that you should never piss off Renjun.

“Can I have those video games when you die?” Chenle asks Donghyuck.

Donghyuck throws him a betrayed look.

“So much for loyal friends. I don’t deserve this,” he says.

Mark, Renjun, and Jeno roll their eyes and or shake their heads at his dramatic comment. Jisung and Jaemin laugh at the response, on the other hand.

“Loyalty? Who’s that, I don’t know her. So can I have your games or nah?” Chenle responds, his oxymoronic angelic mischievous smile gracing his face.

Donghyuck flips Chenle off and Chenle sticks his tongue out in return.

It’s never a dull day when they’re all together, that’s for sure.

They pass the time discussing nothing and everything. Renjun took Sicheng’s words seriously and decided not to do anything involving that dinner until the older got back to him. That even included getting started on making plans. He needs to know if they’ll be inside before they can make a plan.

Eventually, hours later, Renjun phone goes off, telling him that he has a new text message. He’s excited to see it’s from Sicheng.

_ ‘I’ll be at Jaemin-ah’s house in a bit. We’ll talk there okay.’ _

He replies okay and then sits anxiously for the elder to arrive.

“What do we do if he says we can’t get in? It’s going to be so much harder if we have to do this from the outside,” Renjun says borderline whines.

“I’m sure you’ll come up with something considering how long you’ve wanted this,” Mark replies.

He’s probably straight up rob the guy at needlepoint if he really got desperate enough. 

“Damn right I will. I’m not letting this opportunity slip through my fingers,” Renjun says.

Technology that gives his parents’ work a run for their money is tech that should be studied and broken down extensively. Imagine what they can do during missions if he can figure out how to make the tech they use operate like Ahn’s technology.

Finally, a knock on the door snaps them out of their conversation.

“Hey hey, my house, I answer the door,” Jaemin says to Renjun who practically jumped out of his seat to go to the door.

Renjun mumbles something under his breath but lets Jaemin answer the door.

As expected, Sicheng is there.

“Come in, he’s been waiting for you with as much patience as he could muster,” Jaemin says.

Sicheng enters and is immediately engulfed in a big hug.

“You’re here! How was work? Did everything go well?” Renjun says sweetly.

Sicheng tries to push away the younger but Renjun has a firm hold around him.

“I don’t know if you’re doing this to suck up or to bother me for not telling you about the dinner,” Sicheng says.

“A bit of both,” Renjun replies innocently, still trapping the older in his embrace.

Sicheng pinches Renjun on the ear at the response, effectively getting the latter to release his hold. Renjun rubs his ear with a slight pout.

“You’re a brat sometimes you know,” Sicheng says.

“You remind me but you still care about me,” Renjun says smugly.

Sicheng doesn’t give him the satisfaction of a response, instead choosing to go sit on the couch.

“I’m sorry for whatever day you had to go through with him,” Sicheng says to the Renjun, ignoring the younger’s sound of offense.

“He almost fought Hyuck so it was an interesting day to us anyway,” Jeno says, chuckling.

This time, Donghyuck is the one to make the sound of taking offense.

“Fake friends, all of you. I did nothing to deserve this,” he says.

Renjun hits him upside his head softly—relatively softly—and pushes his way to sit in front of Sicheng.

“Enough drama, he isn’t here for that. I did enough waiting today,” Renjun says, turning to Sicheng with anticipation.

The others follow suit and move to face Sicheng to give them his attention. This is a mission for all of them after all.

“Before anything, what are you planning to do exactly and why?” Sicheng asks.

The guys look at Renjun to explain since it is his idea.

“Well, it’s nothing big. Ahn Si-woo isn’t the greatest person and has done more than his fair share of misdeeds thinking that he won’t get caught. You know I’ve always wanted to have a look at his programming so this is a win-win. We take a piece of his tech, I’ll copy all of its schematics and programming, and then when we’re back I’ll break it down completely.” Renjun explains.

This is more of a job of speed and staying inconspicuous than distracting and making a scene. The less attention on them, the better.

“And you’ll use the programming for yourself?” Sicheng asks.

“I’d incorporate it into the current tech I have. We could use an upgrade for the stuff we use,” Renjun answers.

He’s been meaning to mess with their tech recently too so this is perfect timing.

“Alright then. I talked it over with the others and you three can come with us under one condition,” Sicheng says, saying that last part as he sees Renjun about to jump up.

“Anything! I’ll do it!” Renjun says excitedly.

He was secretly ready to start begging on his hands and knees if Sicheng told him no straight out. One condition is nothing compared to what he was prepared to do.

“You guys have to be on your best behavior. Nothing that draws attention. That means no drugging, passing out, drawing crowds, nothing like that. It has to stay as a peaceful and controlled dinner,” Sicheng says.

Which means a lot of their normal tricks for social events they can’t do but they expected that anyway. They wouldn’t go to a dinner last minute and cause havoc. They have many ways of doing something.

“Ha Jaemin is useless this job,” Donghyuck teases.

It’s Jaemin’s turn to give Donghyuck a dirty look this time. 

“You’re useless too Hyuck since you aren’t going to be inside and even if you were, you don’t know how to be on your best behavior,” Jaemin says.

A gagging noise snaps the four out of their conversation and they turn to see Renjun hugging the air out of Jisung and Mark in his excitement. Jisung is comically trying to get out of the older’s grasp while Mark is repeatedly tapping Renjun’s arm. Sicheng is just sitting watching it happen.

“Uh, Injunnie? I think you’re killing them,” Jaemin says.

Renjun seems to finally realize what he’s doing and lets go of the two; Jisung and Mark gratefully taking a breath of air.

“Thank you Jaemin,” Mark breathes.

“I thought I was going to die,” Jisung says dramatically.

Renjun doesn’t pay attention to the two he almost hugged the air out of. Instead, he turns to Sicheng with a big smile.

Sicheng begins to back into the couch as far as he can.

“Oh no you don’t, you are not doing that to me. A normal thank you will be fine,” he says, holding his arms out to block Renjun from coming as if he was the plague.

It’s not often that Renjun is this affectionate but his excitement knows no bounds at this point. He’ll try to rein it in though if it’s to make sure Sicheng doesn’t change his mind.

“Thank you hyung! Thank you thank you. We’ll be angels, I promise. Everything will go so perfectly you won’t even realize that we’re doing something,” Renjun says.

The sweet look in Renjun’s face is anything but comforting though they all know he means it.

“Okay…now he’s creeping me out. Someone take a picture before he’s never in this good of a mood again,” Jaemin half-whispers.

It’s even scarier when Renjun actually poses for the photo when Chenle and Jisung take out their phones to take a picture. It’s definitely rare to see Renjun  _ this _ happy.

But Renjun doesn’t care. He has a job to plan now.

* * *

 

“Jeno, get your butt down here, you look fine,” Renjun shouts.

“And Chenle get out of my closet! You and Jisung need to stop taking stuff without asking,” Jaemin shouts in addition.

Mark and Renjun wait downstairs for the youngest of the trio to finally come down after taking so long to get ready. There’s no doubt the fact that Chenle is upstairs with him is playing a part in his slowness to get ready. Chenle is probably talking his ear off about remembering to get autographs for him.

“I’m coming, tell Chenle to get off of me so I can put my shoes on,” Jeno calls back.

Jisung and Donghyuck snickers as Renjun sighs like an exasperated mother.

“Lele get off of Jeno. Now come on, they’re on their way over and we still have to debrief,” Renjun replies.

They can hear the sound of Jaemin’s room door closing and two pairs of feet coming down the stairs. Finally, Chenle and Jeno are downstairs with the rest of them, the latter dressed in a nice suit.

“Did you spray my cologne?” Jaemin says, catching a whiff of the Chenle’s scent.

Chenle smiles innocently in response.

“I only sprayed to see which one he should wear,” Chenle says.

“You let Jeno use your stuff all the time, why can’t we?” Jisung pipes up.

A pillow hits Jisung from behind. The youngest turns to the culprit, Jeno, who stands behind him with a pillow in his hands.

“For the last time, learn some respect brat. And I get to use his stuff because I ask for it unlike you,” Jeno says.

“Yah, scold him later. We have to debrief before they come,” Renjun says.

It’s finally the night of the dinner. Since this is their first time doing a job with only three out of seven people inside, they took more time to plan everything out. There’s not much they can do from the outside, especially since their resident techie is going to be inside, so those going in have a lot to do.

Needless to say, Renjun is a bit...anxious...about tonight.

“Alright, let’s hear the plan one last time to make sure we’re all on the same page,” Mark says.

“Our part is simple, we get you guys out if anything goes wrong. Hyuck is ready to fake an injury and Nana is ready to fake cry for a call,” Chenle says.

The two mentioned give a cheerful thumbs up in response. They love playing injured, that is how they got out of classes during important lessons that they didn’t study for each and every year.

“Good. Hopefully, we won’t need you guys to make any phone calls for us tonight,” Mark replies.

It’d be best if this dinner and job can go without a hitch. It’d be a milestone for DREAM; they’re so well put together they can do a job with only three people inside.

“I already got into the surveillance system on Jaemin’s laptop so you guys can watch us and say something if need be. I’m leaving Jisung in charge of that,” Renjun says.

“Boo, that’s favoritism,” Jaemin says with a pout.

Jisung mumbles a comment about Jeno being Jaemin’s favorite and borrowing items but Jaemin pays the younger no mind.

“Nah, if it was favoritism then I would have left it to you. Jisung just has the longer attention span out of you four so he’s the best to carefully look at a screen for hours,” Renjun responds casually.

“He got us there,” Donghyuck says with a shrug.

The other three staying all nod in agreement. No one doubts that Renjun likes Jaemin the most out of the three youngest. He’s always ready to fight for the younger. They also won’t deny that Jisung has the longest attention span out of the ones staying. Jaemin’s attention span is as long as his last name and Donghyuck gets bored easily. Chenle is a close second next to Jisung but he will no doubt be focusing more on the people than the surroundings.

“That settles their part now let’s go over ours,” Mark says.

“Well, for the most part, we’re staying near the hyungs and only leaving their side a few times to make it seem less suspicious,” Jeno says.

“We don’t do anything during the actual dinner part and only move when it’s time to socialize. Make sure you greet and speak to people before coming in any contact with the target,” Mark says.

“When it’s time, I’ll go up to him and start a conversation. I’ll distract him long enough for Jeno to steal his phone and give it to me. Then I take it and copy everything I can while you two keep him focused on something else,” Renjun says.

That’s probably going to be the hardest part for them. They have to keep him distracted long enough for him not to notice that his phone is missing while Renjun works his magic. One, Jeno is nowhere as near as good of a thief as Jisung is. But out of the three of them going he is the best. Mark is clumsy and Renjun is best for distracting the programmer. It’s not Jeno’s first time pickpocketing a person so he has some experience to help him. He also asked Jisung for a few tips so it should go well.

On a more confident note though, Renjun found out that Si-woo’s phone is connected to his computer and that he has detailed information on his phone, many people saying they’ve seen him working on his phone. Renjun just has to download everything on the phone onto a drive and he can decipher it all later.

“I’ll return the phone when everything is done and then we’re in the calm waters for the rest of the night,” Jeno says.

It’s a fairly simple plan as long as they stay under the radar for the most part.

“Oh here, take this with you,” Jaemin says, handing Renjun a small vial.

Renjun takes it and looks at the clear liquid inside.

“What’s this? You know we’re not allowed to drug anyone tonight,” Renjun says.

“It’s not really drugging per se. The liquid inside simulates the feeling of being drunk. One drop in a glass of wine and they’ll be more tipsy than usual. It’s in case something goes wrong. Drunk people are easier to steal from and distract so it’s just a backup. There are no negative effects unless you count a hangover as one. I can promise you it won’t cause attention unless he’s a wild drunk and even then, that’s on him,” Jaemin responds.

Renjun looks at the vial one more time before pocketing it.

“I hope we don’t have to use it but I’ll take it just in case. Thanks,” he says.

Jaemin nods and gives a thumbs up in return.

“Alright guys, let’s bring another win for DREAM,” Mark says.

“If and when we pull this off, I’m treating you guys to ice cream so make sure we all do our parts well,” Renjun says.

That gets everyone a bit more cheerful because Renjun doesn’t treat them to anything often, well not willingly anyway, so this is big. Plus, who doesn’t love ice cream? 

“Wait, what about me though?” Jaemin asks.

While he himself does like ice cream, he can’t really have it unless he wants to be sick again. And though he is perfectly willing to take that risk, he got a lecture from Mark and Jeno about not taking as many unnecessary risks, especially if he’s going to complain afterward when he’s in the bathroom dying.

“I’ll buy you that death drink you like so much and whatever treat you want,” Renjun replies.

How to get Jaemin on board for most things 101, lesson 1: Buy him the poison drink he dares to call coffee.

“Alright let’s win this, guys!” Jaemin says, suddenly more motivated.

Half of the people in the room roll their eyes and the other half shakes their head at his response.

“He’s going to die one day from that drink,” Jisung says, shaking his head.

Jaemin just gives him a smile.

“It’ll be a good death though,” Jaemin responds.

Before anyone can say something in response, mainly Jeno and Mark, the doorbell rings.

“We talked about this already, Injunnie,” Jaemin whines as he runs to beat Renjun to the door.

He pulls the elder back before he can grab the doorknob and sends him back. He gives Renjun a pointed look and points to the couch. Renjun walks back towards the couch, comically mocking Jaemin as he walks.

Jaemin opens the door.

“Come in hyungs. They’re ready,” he says, letting them inside.

Taeyong, Doyoung, and Sicheng walk in dressed up in suits and ready to go.

“What are we considering as ready?” Doyoung asks.

He gives the younger boys a look like a parent suspecting that their child is bringing something along that they shouldn’t.

“We promise we’re clean tonight. We have our earpieces, our cellphones, and no weapons on us. I’ll be putting my laptop in the car though so I can use it,” Renjun says.

He purposely leaves out the vial Jaemin gave him for peace sake. What they don’t know won’t hurt them.

“I don’t see any earpieces on you guys,” Sicheng says.

Mark, Renjun, and Jeno turn their heads to show their earrings. On one ear, all three of them are wearing a cuff and chain earring that starts at the top of their ear and goes all the way down to the stud.

“Renjun was able to put them in our earrings and have a thin clear wire run around the chain and to our ears so we can hear each other. It’s purposely hard to see and it’s the reason why we were these long cuff and chain earrings on missions,” Mark explains.

“It took me a while to design and create but they work pretty well. I do want to fix them a bit though,” Renjun says.

They were all really impressed when Renjun first showed them these. They knew he was good with technology but they didn’t know he was THAT good. Since his parents were always busy, he had plenty of time growing up to learn and practice creating things. These earpieces are some of his best work and it still amazes them sometime how well they work.

“Impressive. I guess you guys really do know what you’re doing and do it all yourselves,” Taeyong says.

“Yup, we like to believe that we have a bit of experience in what we do,” Jaemin says.

“Which is why we can give you the assurance that we’ll make sure tonight goes smoothly. Thanks again for being willing to take us,” Mark adds.

They’ll make sure to do everything when the olders most likely aren’t looking to spare their nerves. It’s for the best if their illegal activities aren’t being watched by their already worried nannies who are already going out of their way to bring them to this event.

“No problem. Renjun would have found his way in anyway, so might as well bring him to keep an eye on him,” Sicheng says.

Renjun shrugs in response.

“He isn’t wrong so I won’t argue. This makes it easier for all of us,” he says.

This saves them a lot of trouble and extra planning. Hopefully, since they have an easy entryway in this won’t be too hard for them overall.

“Be safe out there. Have fun guys,” Jisung says.

“Don’t forget my autographs,” Chenle adds.

The three elder give him a questioning look while the three younger roll their eyes.

“You asked for so many, we’re going to forget,” Jeno says.

“Fine, just remember Xiao Dejun, Wong Kunhang, and Liu YangYang. I won’t take Nana’s stuff for two weeks if you get me their autographs,” Chenle replies.

Jaemin pops up at this and turns to Renjun, Jeno, and Mark with a pleading look.

“Please get those autographs for him. If he stops taking my stuff then you won’t have to hear me complain about it. Please please PLEASE get him those autographs. I want my robes back,” he says.

“But won’t Jisung just take your stuff anyway?” Donghyuck interjects.

Jaemin and Chenle turn quickly and hush him sharply, Jaemin also throwing a glare at Jisung, before turning back to the three to continue begging. Donghyuck holds his hands up to show peace before the two youngers end up trying to do something to him.

“Don’t worry, we’ll make sure they’ll get you those autographs. Just make sure you leave Nana’s stuff alone when you get them okay. We have to go now,” Taeyong says.

Chenle and Jaemin celebrate together, happy for their own reasons.

“Have a good time,” they say in unison as they celebrate together.

“Bye guys,” Donghyuck says, Jisung waving goodbye behind him.

The others wave goodbye to the ones staying and then leave the house. Sicheng’s car is outside which means he is the one driving. They get into his car and he pulls off.

“Now just so you know, we already told Jaehyun that you guys were coming and because we’re so nice, we got it where Ahn Si-woo is sitting at our table with us,” Doyoung says.

“Have I ever mentioned how I appreciate you guys? I really appreciate you guys,” Renjun says happily.

Okay so maybe he lied a little about not really caring about the programmer himself. Secretly, he’s just as inspired by the man as he is his technology. He thinks his friends picked up on it in the past three weeks but that’s okay because they understand that meeting the man himself is much as a dream come true for him as it is to get his hands on the technology.

And now he gets to sit at the same table as the programmer he has looked up to since he was little. Be still his heart.

“Yeah yeah, flatter and suck up later. We thought it’d make things easier for you guys so we can avoid a scene. Sicheng also said you would silently flip if you sat with him and we thought it’d be funny to watch. We have our own motives too you know,” Doyoung responds.

“Oh, Injunnie is going to practically attack the man with conversation the minute he sees him,” Jeno says with a smirk.

Their earpiece sparks to life and Jaemin’s voice appears.

_ “My bet is he’s going to go speechless when he first sees him and then try to pep talk himself to open his mouth after a few minutes,”  _ Jaemin says.

“I’m willing to put money against that. You’re on Nana, the regular price,” Jeno replies.

Renjun shoots Jeno a look and then Mark as the older chuckles at the teasing.

“Are we betting on his reaction? Make sure someone records it for proof for the winner,” Sicheng says, not taking his eyes off the road.

Renjun crosses his arms with a frown.

“You all are dead to me,” he says, though if he’s being honest, they aren’t on the wrong track.

The rest of the ride is easy going and filled with them teasing the young tech. But the closer they get, the more excited Renjun becomes and the less the teasing bothers him.

How could he be bothered when he’s about to meet the person he’s looked up to for years?

When they finally arrive, Mark puts a hand on Renjun’s shoulder.

“Come on, we have a job to do. Try not to get too excited until afterward when it’s time to celebrate,” Mark says with a wink.

Renjun gives the older a smile. Though they were teasing him relentlessly, they know how much this job means to him and they are going to make sure they succeed if not for anything else, for him. 

This is it. This is the night his dream finally comes true.

They get out of the car and the switch in the three boys is almost shocking to the elders if they didn’t see something similar from them before already. 

The boys went from joking and playful best friends to calm and behaved young adults. It’s almost as if they weren’t just playing around a few seconds ago and they are just regular guests. Their ability to switch is admittingly amazing.

They give their names and enter the restaurant. Unlike the usual fancy events they go to, this one doesn’t feel cold and uppity. It’s lively and warm. The place actually feels like it’s filled with people who have faces and not just blurs of bodies you’re forced to talk to. This must be what a  _ REAL _ charity event feels like.

“We definitely aren’t going to cause a scene here,” Mark says to Jeno and Renjun.

The two nod in agreement. This event so far seems too nice to cause a scene.

They’re led away from the entrance and brought to one side of the room where they meet none other than the host of tonight’s event: Jung Jaehyun.

“You guys made it. I was almost afraid you wouldn’t be able to get away from work,” Jaehyun says with open arms.

He gives all three hugs, a different feeling in each hug. He hugs Sicheng as brothers would hug, hugs Taeyong as you would someone you knew for a very long time, and hugs Doyoung as you would someone you like to rile up. It’s clear he’s very familiar with each one of them.

“And these must be your charges for tonight. It’s a pleasure to formally meet you three. I know I briefly saw you all before but never had the chance to speak to you,” Jaehyun says.

He shakes their hands.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too Jaehyun-ssi. Thank you for letting us come last minute,” Mark says.

Jaehyun gives Taeyong a knowing look that only they could really understand.

“He must be your charge, he has good manners,” he says.

Sicheng and Doyoung take offense on behalf of their charges and themselves.

“Ours have great manners so you know,” Sicheng says, him and Doyoung gesturing to their charges.

Jaehyun laughs.

“I wasn’t wrong though. It’s surprising that their parents have such polite boys. I still remember his mother’s ‘conversation’ with me,” he says pointing at Jeno, scrunching his nose at the end.

The three youngers make a face as they are reminded of Mrs. Lee’s way of trying to convince Jaehyun.

“I apologize for that. The memory haunts me too,” Jeno says.

“It haunts all of us,” Renjun says with a grimace.

It truly was disturbing.

“It’s good then that you all seem different than your parents. I hope you guys have a good time tonight. I heard one of you are hoping to meet a life long model and inspiration here. Good luck. if you’ll excuse me now, I have to go be a good host. See you later,” Jaehyun says, giving a wink to Renjun.

He walks away to greet others who were waiting a bit away to see him. Model Jung Jaehyun is a popular find and it’s not every day you get invited by him to an event of his.

When he’s out of earshot, Renjun turns to Sicheng.

“What did you tell him?” He asks.

Sicheng just smiles and pats the top of his head.

“Nothing big, just how much you’ve been freaking out about tonight to meet your inspiration. Now let’s go to our table,” he replies.

He pulls Renjun along before the younger can complain, leading him to their assigned table as the others follow. Renjun gets out of Sicheng’s grasp though and falls into step with his friends.

“How are the visuals looking?” Renjun asks softly through his earpiece.

_ “Everything’s clear and we can see every part of this place minus the bathroom of course. Nothing is out of the normal,” _ Jisung replies.

“Did the target walk in yet?” Jeno asks.

_ “Not yet. My guess is he’ll be there right before it starts or fashionably late since he is into that stuff,” _ Jisung says.

Which means they have some time to get settled into the scene to make everything look more natural and normal. 

“How are you guys doing over there?” Mark asks.

_ “Jaemin is cooking for us after Hyuck asked him to so it’s about to be great over here,”  _ Chenle speaks this time.

_ “For the record, he nagged me to cook. For sanity sake and so these kids don’t starve, I’m doing this. And you guys say I don’t know how to be mature,” _ Jaemin chimes in.

They have a feeling that even if Hyuck didn’t bother Jaemin to cook, the latter would have done it anyway or ordered them all something to eat. Donghyuck may be older but Jaemin is like a mother when it comes to Chenle and Jisung. He’d jokingly let Donghyuck go hungry—not for long since he loves his sunshine—but the two youngest he would cook a mountain of food for in an instant.

“You know, I can’t believe we left Sungie and Nana alone with those two devils. They’re going to end up doing all of the work,” Jeno says to Mark and Renjun.

His comment is met by two “WE HEARD THAT” through his earpiece from Chenle and Donghyuck.

The way their earpieces work is that there is one main communication line that connects all of their pieces so everyone can hear everyone. On a normal mission day, Renjun could open up a separate line if he needs to talk to one or two members without disturbing the entire group. He could also close a line or mute it if silence is needed on someone’s end. But since their resident tech is not behind a computer for once, a rare occurrence, he decided to leave the main line open for those back at the house for simplicity sake and to make sure his tech doesn’t get messed up because they touched something they didn’t understand.

Because the main line is open and is going to stay open, everyone can hear everything each other says tonight. That means tonight is going to require a lot more focus to make sure they aren’t focusing too much on someone else’s conversation while having their own and for those at home to make sure they don’t make too much noise.

Another time, Renjun will find a way to fix how this will go if he’s not behind a computer for a mission, especially since he’ll have new tech to work with, but for now they’ll work with the arrangement they have and even though it’s not his computer, he’ll pray that they do not damage anything on that computer.

“What he means is be good and remember we can hear everything. Stay alert, we’re at our table now,” Mark says.

The last part of the comment is to everyone. Jeno and Renjun nod next to him and the other give their agreement over the line.

The three boys present snap their full attention back to their surroundings. 

Their table barely has anyone at it, probably because the six of them are already sitting together. Only one person is sitting there currently and there’s going to be one more empty seat once they sit down so that means it’s only going to be eight of them at this table. 

That’s good for them, fewer eyes on them during dinner.

“I’m surprised our table has so few people at it,” Jeno says.

“Jaehyun told us that he added a table since you three were joining us. He said it gave him room to put a few more people on the invitation list to fill up our original three seats and the two open seats at this table. Consider yourselves lucky and cared about,” Taeyong responds.

Their elders are really helping them out tonight by making things easier. They’re going to have to make them a gift or something for all of this.

“We’ll be sure to thank him once again before the night is over,” Renjun says.

They take their seats at the table. The person sitting there seems surprised to have six seats filled up at once but falls into a conversation with Doyoung and Taeyong almost immediately. Sicheng starts a conversation with the three youngers though it’s really the youngers doing most of the talking.

It goes like this until it’s time for the event to start. Their target still hasn’t shown up which means he is coming fashionably late or not coming at all. For Renjun’s sake, they all hope it’s the former and not the latter. 

Jaehyun gives his welcome speech and thanks to everyone for being here. They’re sure at one part you can hear someone say something about his dimples when he smiled to the audience but they tried to not pay attention to people’s conversations around them. For once.

“Dinner will start soon. Waiters will be over to take orders but until then please continue enjoying your conversations,” Jaehyun says.

Everyone claps and then go back to their own conversations.

_ “Heads up guys. Target is coming over,” _ Jisung says.

The moment where Ahn Si-woo takes his seat at the table is absolutely hilarious.

Red takes over Renjun’s face and his mouth opens and closes silently. If you paid attention to his hands on his lap you’d see that they are trembling in excitement and nerves. Finally, a high pitch sound comes out of his mouth before he turns away to compose himself.

_ “Pay up Jeno,” _ Jaemin says smugly.

Loud laughter is heard through the line, Chenle’s distinct laugh being heard the clearest out of the mix.

Mark and Jeno try not to laugh right then and there, Jeno hiding his laughter as a cough and Mark hiding it by drinking his water. Sicheng and Doyoung aren’t doing much better than them, also trying to hide their laughter. Even the other guest at their table seems to be holding back their laughter at Renjun’s reaction. Taeyong is the only one who takes pity on the younger. For now that it is.

“Hello, I'm glad you could make it tonight. We were beginning to wonder if the empty seat had an owner,” Taeyong says, taking the attention off of Renjun.

Ahn gives Taeyong a polite smile, seeming to not notice the others who are laughing or the poor red boy.

“There was some trouble arriving but better late than never, correct?” He replies.

Fortunately, the waiters start to approach tables, giving everyone something else to focus and giving Renjun a chance to compose himself better.

_ “For our big, bad, scary tech, that was a pretty lame reaction. You sure you were breathing there?” _ Donghyuck taunts over the line.

“Shut up,” Renjun hisses under his breath.

Though the younger says no more, that doesn’t end the laughter in the background. They are never going to let him live this down.

A waiter comes to their table and everyone gives their preferred choice from the three options provided. Afterward, light conversation is made until their food arrives. Unfortunately for Renjun, he still cannot find the courage to even look the older man in the eyes without feeling his hands shake. 

Okay so maybe he lied A LOT about not caring about the man himself. He’s just really inspired by the programmer. It’s not every day that his parents want to hire someone personally. That alone gives a clue into how good this man’s work is.

Despite Renjun’s cold feet, which will no doubt lessen when it’s time to do what he actually came here for, dinner happens without a hitch. It almost feels as if they were there just because they were invited and not because they are trying to steal from someone. It really is a nice event and they find themselves enjoying the night.

Soon, it’s time for them to socialize—the whole point of the event when you think about it—and the boys waste no time getting to work.

“Let’s go introduce ourselves to people, hyung,” Jeno says to Doyoung.

“I would like to talk to Jaehyun-ssi a bit more,” Mark says to Taeyong.

Renjun turns to Sicheng and Sicheng already has a knowing look.

“I’m not even going to ask, you know what I want to do,” Renjun says.

The three elder give each other speaking looks. Their charges really do act differently when they have something they’re trying to do.

“Alright then, let’s go,” Doyoung responds.

They all excuse themselves from the table and go in opposite directions.

If they stay spread out, then the three look less suspicious just in case someone notices something missing, which they hope will not happen.

Though the olders know what the youngers are planning, they still take their charge from person to person, casually conversing with the other guests. They no doubt notice the few times one of the youngers slip away for a bit, going to converse with someone else and then returning, but do not say anything about it.

After about twenty minutes or so of this, they decide that it should be good enough.

“Okay, Renjun you’re up. We don’t want to wait too long,” Mark says lowly as he once again walks away from Taeyong.

_ “Target is on the same side of the room as your table, speaking to a tall man with glasses and who has a glass of wine in his hand. The best way to approach him is directly from the front. Jeno, do you know where the phone is?”  _ Jisung says.

“Actually, I do and it’s a story. It’s in his jacket pocket but as you can probably see, he’s not wearing his suit jacket. It’s at the table but he has a clear line of sight on it and that watch of his will tell him when it’s taken too far away from him,” Jeno responds.

As Jeno speaks, Renjun starts to make his way over to Ahn, silently praying his nerves don’t get the best of him. He has to stay cool and collected.

_ “Well while Renjun talks to him, he won’t be able to focus on his jacket. As for the watch, your best bet is to keep him distracted long enough where he won’t have a chance to look at his watch,” _ Donghyuck supplies.

_ “If anything, lead him further away from the table that way it’s him that’s too far and not his phone, _ ” Jaemin adds.

That should work considering that the watch doesn’t necessarily alert him when the phone is too far away, it just makes a notification of it when he looks at the watch screen.

“I’ll wait at the table to make it look less suspicious,” Jeno says.

“Alright then let’s do this. I have a clear view of him and the person he was speaking to just left. Everyone be ready,” Renjun says.

They all give their confirmation that they’re ready and the line goes silent just in time as he reaches their target for the night.

Ahn Si-woo, the one programmer he has looked up to since he was small.

Mission aside, he can’t believe he’s actually about to talk to the Ahn Si-woo.

“Hi, excuse me,” Renjun says, thanking that his voice worked this time.

Ahn turns to him and his breath almost stops short.

This is it. He’s going to talk to his role model after so many years of his life of looking up to the man.

“You’re one of the kids sitting at my table, yes?” Ahn asks.

Renjun nods, maybe a bit too enthusiastically.

“Yes, yes I am. It’s an honor to formally meet you. I’ve been a fan of your work since I was small,” he replies, sticking out his hand.

Ahn shakes his hand and it takes everything in his will to not freak out over it.

“Really now?” Ahn says.

“Yes! I mean yes. Well uh, my parents used to show me your work when I was younger and it’s what really got me into programming. You create amazing things and I’m absolutely inspired by it all,” Renjun responds.

He remembers being about seven and seeing pictures of Ahn’s work. He started messing around with technology at a really early age since his parents breathe wires and coding. But he really didn’t take his own liking to it until he saw the amazing things that it can do as shown in Ahn’s work. That’s really when his passion developed.

“It’s nice to know that I have an admirer at a young age. Is this why you seemed so flustered when I first came?” Ahn says with a smirk on his face.

Renjun feels his face heat up again as he hears his friends laugh over the line. He wishes he could tell them all to shut up but that would look too suspicious. He’s seriously never going to be able to live that down.

“Well you see, when my hyung took me here, he didn’t tell me that you would be here or that you’d be sitting at the same table with us. I was caught off guard to see you join us. I guess my reaction was a bit strange. I apologize about that,” Renjun lies, rubbing his arm awkwardly.

“No, no, it’s understandable. It’s not every day you get to meet a life inspiration. I am genuinely surprised that someone your age even knows who I am. You young folk are always on your technology but never stop to think about the people who are behind making it. It’s nice that you have an interest in knowing about it,” Ahn replies.

Maybe it’s because he knows his friends very well, but Renjun just KNOWS that one or more of them just rolled their eyes at the young people comment. They all can’t stand when adults say those types of things.

“Oh no, you misunderstood. I’m not just interested in knowing about this field, I’m actually a programmer. I’ve been programming for years now but I get a lot of my inspiration from you and your work. It helps moves me to become a better programmer,” Renjun says.

Ahn gives him an amused look but not a happy amusement. It almost looks like when someone tells you something that you think is so hard to believe that it’s amusing.

“Really now? Do you have any examples of your work on you? A good programmer always does just in case they meet a future client,” he replies.

The question catches Renjun off guard. He wasn’t expecting to be asked to show his work. But it does make for a longer distraction so it shouldn’t hurt he guesses.

“Uh, I have some stuff on my phone, like notes and stuff. I recently reprogrammed one of my friends' laptop so it can have certain features and I still have those notes on my phone,” Renjun says.

He takes out his phone and looks for his notes. Luckily, nothing on his phone has anything to do with DREAM so it’s okay to show people. Well, this phone at least doesn’t.

He hands over his phone when he finds what he was looking for. Though he won’t admit it aloud, his heart is beating twice as fast as the older man looks over his work. He never imagined this happening.

“I got his phone. It’s ready for you whenever you are,” Jeno says over the line.

Wow, he almost forgot he was on a mission for a second there. But it’s whatever; part one is done.

It’s a few more moments of silence and Renjun can tell that the older is thoroughly checking over his work. He isn’t too worried though. He has worked very hard with his programming and though it’s not his at parents' level or Ahn’s level, it is still very good especially for someone his age. Yeah, there are most likely mistakes in there but it still is overall good.

Finally, Ahn speaks.

“You’ve been programming for years you say?” He asks.

“Yes, I have. I learned at an early age,” Renjun responds.

Ahn hums as he hands Renjun back his phone and Renjun can’t tell if that’s good or not. Nothing on his face changed. The same amused smirk is still there.

Eventually, Renjun can’t take the suspense anymore.

“So, is it good?” He asks, a hopeful attitude reflecting in his tone.

Ahn snorts in response.

“Is it good? It looks as if a five-year-old did that,” he says.

The response takes Renjun aback. 

“I’m sorry?” He says in confusion.

“I said it looks as if a five-year-old did that. You may have started young but clearly you did not progress from that young age, unless you were worse when younger,” Ahn says.

Okay, now Renjun knows that he isn’t imagining things. His work was actually just insulted.  **HE** was just insulted and to his very face at that. The complete silence in his earpiece confirms that that is what just happened.

“Don’t you believe that is a bit harsh to say? Surely my work isn’t that bad,” he says, confusion still in his voice but also mixing with a bit of defensiveness.

Ahn chuckles as if what he said was funny.

“Oh trust me, that is the nice way of putting it. You’re never going to get anywhere in this field if you keep programming like that. What’s your name kid?” Ahn says.

All sense of amazement in Renjun flies out the window at those words. While it hurts greatly that the man he looked up to for years just told him he’ll never make it anywhere with his work, it upsets him more to be talked down to like this.

He straightens up and looks the man in the eyes, a more guarded stand taking form.

“Huang Renjun,” he responds, waiting to see the man’s reaction.

He doesn’t have to wait long at all.

“Ah, Huang’s kid. No wonder your programming is so bad. Who taught you, your mother?” Ahn says.

Now usually, Renjun doesn’t take offense on behalf of his parents—why should he—but with the way that question was asked, he can’t help but become a bit defensive.

“What is that supposed to mean? I’ll have you know that while they both helped me at times, I really taught myself,” he says.

Ahn doesn’t seem to notice the edge seeping into the younger’s voice. If he does, he’s not paying it any mind.

“Self-taught, even worse. But it’s understandable. What are you supposed to do when your parents can barely program themselves? Your father I’ll give a bit of credit to but that’s about it,” Ahn replies casually as if he didn’t just insult an entire family.

“My parents are some of the best programmers in this country. Their entire business is built on their skill and hard work. And I do believe you are insinuating something about my mother but are not being clear about it,” Renjun says, his tone becoming more sharper.

Ahn still doesn’t seem to care about the younger’s growing agitation, his stupid casual and smug look still on his face.

“I’m sorry to break your fantasy of mommy and daddy but their programming is half-assed at best but everyone isn’t educated enough to know that. As for your mother, all I’m saying is that there is no surprise that she isn’t good at programming. A woman who can sit at a computer all day and it not be for secretarial work isn’t a traditional woman. I’m surprised your father married a bore such as her. But no matter how long she sits at that computer, she’s never going to reach the potential someone like your father or even you with your sloppy work has,” Ahn says.

Renjun feels his fingers curl in response, dying to become a fist and punch the lights out of the man in front of him. He feels his jaw clench and it feels like he has to physically restrain himself.

His mother is a lot of bad things but one thing she is not is a bad programmer. Sometimes he wished his mother took more time out for him so she could teach him what she knows about programming and technology instead of sending him to classes after he figured out the majority of it for himself. 

For this man to stand there in front of him and say his mother is bad at what she does all because she is a woman is one of the biggest disrespects this man could have done. Sexism is a big hell no.

“I don’t know what kind of outdated world you are living in but there are women all over who can create better software than your ass could on any given day. As for my parents ‘half-assed’ work, you call it that but yet it’s still selling faster and more than your products ever have and you can’t beat them, even with your intellect and work. You may create great work but you are a crappy human. I hope your sexist ass goes bankrupt,” Renjun says, turning on his heels to walk away.

“What can’t handle the truth kid?” He hears from behind him.

Renjun sticks up his middle finger.

“Go die in a hole bastard.”

He walks away before he says anything else and really starts a scene. He goes to the table and takes the phone from Jeno without a word. The younger tries to catch him but he just keeps on walking, not in the mood to talk about what just happened.

“I’m taking out my earpiece so I can work,” is the only warning he gives before taking off the top part of his earring and disconnects his earpiece. Benefits of being the techie, he knows how to disconnect the tech so he can have his own privacy. 

He goes outside and to Sicheng’s car, grateful that he convinced the older to let him hold the keys.

He locks himself in the car and gets to work on the phone.

It isn’t hard for him to get the phone unlocked and find where all the information he’s looking for is at. He picks up his laptop and starts the process.

He works in silence as he thinks about how that conversation just went. He can’t believe that that man is so...so RUDE! He’s sexist and disrespectful and cocky. Renjun hopes all his stuff fails now and he’s left without a single won in his name.

He doesn’t know how long he sat there furiously typing as he thought about the terrible man. He doesn’t even feel good when he finishes what he was doing, successfully obtaining everything he needs to find out what he’s always wanted to know. He just feels anger, disappointment, and hurt.

A knock on the window snaps him out of his internal ranting and he sees it’s someone he’s never met before but definitely knows of.

Moon Taeil.

Renjun rolls down the window.

“May I join you? I have cake,” Taeil says.

Confused but still a polite child, Renjun nods and unlocks the door. Taeil gets in the car, taking a seat next to him before closing and locking the door again.

“My name is Moon Taeil. You’re Huang Renjun right?” Taeil says, handing the younger a small box that most likely has the aforementioned cake.

“Yes, that’s me. If you don’t mind me asking Taeil-ssi, why are you here?” Renjun says.

Taeil hands the younger a fork along with some napkins before attending to his own box that probably also has cake.

“I’m here to check on you. You see, I was talking with your hyungs when your friend Jeno came up to us. He told Sicheng that you were upset and explained what happened. Sicheng was ready to storm over and give the man a piece of his mind and probably his fist. So while they tried to talk him out of doing so, I decided to come and check on you. I brought cake because cake makes everyone feel better,” he responds.

Renjun watches as Taeil opens the box, figuring out how he is supposed to open his own, and sees a slice of cake that is very pretty to look at. He opens his own box and sees it looks just as pretty. It almost looks too pretty to be eaten.

“You didn’t have to but thank you, I really appreciate it. Did you make this yourself? It looks very nice,” Renjun says.

It sorta surprises him that someone he’s never met before came out of his own establishment just to check on him. He would have thought if anyone would have tried to check up on him it would have been one of the three older they came with.

For the record though, he is  _ not _ surprised that Sicheng wants to go off on Ahn. Though he is usually more reserved, even he has his moments and being disrespectful to his younger is one of the quickest ways to cause one of those moments.

“It isn’t much, no one should have to be alone when sad. And yes I did make it myself. I hope you like it, it’s one of my favorite recipes. I decided to make a separate cake once we invited your hyungs and then they told us they were bringing you three so I made a bigger one. It’s a little tradition of ours that we share,” Taeil says.

“I’m sure I’m going to love it. Thank you for including us in this tradition,” Renjun replies.

They simultaneously take the first bite of their cakes together. Renjun practically moans as the sweet flavor touches his tongue.

“This is so good,” he says with his fork still in his mouth.

Taeil chuckles. He loves to see people’s first reaction to this recipe. Friends make the recipe enjoyable.

“You really are Sicheng’s charge. He had the same reaction when he first had it. I’m glad you like it,” he says.

“Like it? I’m in love with it. Thank you for sharing it with me,” Renjun says, digging into the cake and enjoying each bite.

“It’s no problem. You know, this was the type of cake I made when this very same thing happened to me,” Taeil says.

Renjun looks up to him, still eating the cake but a bit slower so he can talk.

“What do you mean?” He asks.

Taeil gives a reminiscent chuckle.

“Well, when I was twenty-two, I finally met the chef I looked up to since I was in junior high. He was my only inspiration and he was the reason why I was even into culinary. My food was becoming popular and my parents just helped me open up my restaurant. This chef came to my restaurant to check everything out and I was excited. I didn’t sleep once I found out he was coming,” he says.

Renjun can relate to that excitement. He wouldn’t have gone to sleep last night either if it wasn’t for Donghyuck calling him and yelling at him to go to sleep, threatening to call Mark and say he wasn’t ready for the mission if he didn’t. He was just so excited that he couldn’t wait for it to be time.

Too bad it all was ruined in a matter of minutes.

“What happened?” Renjun asks.

“I had my world thoroughly ruined, that’s what happened. When he came, I found out that he was one of the most stuck up people to walk this Earth. Not only that, when he had my food, he spit it out on the floor and insulted it in front of everyone there. I was crushed for days because the man I looked up to for so long was nothing like I expected him to be,” Taeil says.

Renjun winces at the comment. That’s worse than what he received. At least his dreams were crushed quietly and between them and his friends listening in only. But Taeil had his world ruined in front of a bunch of people. And spitting out food on the floor is very humiliating and insulting to the person who made it. Renjun doesn’t know what he would have done if that was him.

“That sounds horrible. What did you do?” Renjun says.

“Well, I locked myself away for a bit and drowned myself in food. I was cooking and baking nonstop as if I had to prove to someone that I did know how to cook. I tried to hide my feelings behind pots, pans, salt, and sugar. It didn’t work well though and eventually, I was pulled out of it by Doyoung. He came and talked me out of it and supported me. Then he dragged me out along with Jaehyun and they both didn’t let me go back in until midnight. If it wasn’t for them, I would have sulked much longer,” Taeil responds.

That kind of reminds Renjun of what he does, locking himself away and pretending. He’s not going to lie, when he got home tonight, he was going to drown himself in his work and pretend as if his feelings weren’t destroyed this night. But now thinking about it, he doubts anyone will allow him to do that and with good cause of course.

“What about that chef? Did you still feel like you had to prove yourself after what he said?” Renjun asks.

“I’ll admit, I had trouble believing in myself and my skills after what he did. But I slowly realized that what he did was probably out of spite. I was young and rising to success quickly whereas it took him years to get to where he was at. He’s practically unknown now but I’m sure having someone my age be more successful than him was a hit to his pride. So he decided to destroy mine but I couldn’t let that happen. I had to keep doing my best so I could prove to the people who didn’t want to see me succeed that I will either way. It was a good feeling not letting him affect my life in any way anymore. While it’s good to have a role model, if they’re you’re only inspiration for doing it, can you really call it something you love?” Taeil replies.

Renjun never thought about it like that. He knows his love for technology is his own but was his determination his as well or was it just some attempt to be like the person he looked up to? One person had so much influence on him that it actually really hurt him when it turned out the man was complete trash.

“How did you know then that cooking was something you loved and not just something you were copying from him?” He asks.

“I thought long and hard about it. I asked myself if someone told me to give up cooking, could I really do it? I figured out that I couldn’t so then I asked myself why. I realized that I love to make something that people enjoy and it makes me happy. After that and a bit of help from some friends, I assured myself that this is my own passion and not me being some crazy fan,” Taeil answers.

Renjun tries to think about that answer. If someone told him to give up programming, could he do it? Could he give up his computer? Could he stop creating new things and trying to improve already made things? He doesn’t think he could. It’s what makes him-him. It wasn’t Ahn who motivated him to learn how to hack. It wasn’t the thought of Ahn that made him create the earpieces his friends all wear now. It wasn’t the thought of Ahn that made him DREAM’s techie. That was all him and his love for it. That’s his passion.

“Word of advice for you: don’t improve because of someone else. Improve because you want to be better at what you love. Sicheng likes to brag that you’re a smart kid for your age and you’re good at what you do. I’m not saying what happened shouldn’t hurt. It’s going to hurt a lot and you know what at times you’re going to remember what he said and feel down. But also remember that he was wrong. You have talent; don’t let one rude person make you feel otherwise” Taeil says.

He gives Renjun a smile and a firm but comforting squeeze on the shoulder. Renjun returns the smile, admittedly feeling much better than earlier.

“Thank you Taeil-ssi. I needed that,” Renjun says.

“Anytime. Now I hope to see you back in there soon; I’m sure your friends are absolutely worried about you now and Sicheng is glaring daggers at the man,” Taeil responds.

He gives the younger one last comforting squeeze and then gets out of the car, leaving Renjun by himself once more.

Renjun takes a deep breath to ready himself. He can do this. Taeil is right, he can’t let this one person affect him so much. He’s going to go in there and continue enjoying himself. He knows he’s a good programmer and he’s not going to let some asshole tell him otherwise.

He puts back in his earpiece and reconnects it to the line.

“Hey, Jaemin you there?”

The response is almost immediate, background shuffling can be heard and he’s sure that the others are surprised that he’s back sooner than normal.

_ “I’m here Injunnie. Do you need something?” _ Jaemin replies.

Renjun can hear in the younger’s voice the want to ask if he’s alright. He knows that they’re all wondering how he’s doing. He’ll make sure to talk it out with them later. Right now, though he does feel better, the sting is still there and he doesn’t really want to talk about it yet.

He takes out the small vial in his pocket and looks at it with intent.

“What would happen if I poured the entire vial into someone’s drink?” He asks.

The vial isn’t big in the slightest so it’s only so much he can pour but Jaemin did say one drop when explaining.

_ “Well, in simple terms, they wouldn’t be on their feet for long. That would be like near death intoxicated just without the actual almost dying part. They wouldn't make it out of there by themselves and would have the worst hangover of their life, not to mention it’s going to absolutely suck until they actually do blackout,” _ Jaemin explains.

Renjun gives the small vial a surprised look. It’s amazing that such a small amount of liquid can cause such a thing. They may think what he does is pretty cool but he thinks what Jaemin is able to make is even cooler and secretly scary.

“On the devil scale of Mark to Lele, how bad is the idea?” Renjun asks.

_ “It’s a Hyuck idea but then again you aren’t the sweetest either when pissed off so I’m not surprised at this,” _ Jaemin replies.

_ “Hey, I thought Hyuck was the worst on the scale,” _ Chenle chimes in.

A smile reappears on Renjun’s face at hearing the younger’s voice. Knowing that they’re all still there though he was going to go MIA for a bit makes him feel good. 

_ “You’re Chinese Lele; everyone here knows that any Chinese friend we make ends up to be the devil in sheep’s clothing. You’ll always be worse than me on that scale. The only reason Injunnie isn’t after me is he’s more mature,” _ Donghyuck says.

_ “That’s not true! Kun hyung and Sicheng hyung are angels,” _ Chenle responds.

Someone snorts and Renjun is pretty sure it’s Mark.

_ “Sicheng hyung just tried to punch the guy for upsetting Renjun. When we wouldn’t let him, he settled for cursing the guy out in Chinese and glaring,” _ Mark says, proving Renjun’s guess correct.

_ “As for Kun hyung, we all know he has his moments. Just because they aren’t as outwardly evil as you are doesn’t mean that they’re saints. We’re all scared of them for a reason. It’s the curse we have, any friend from China we make ends up being either scary or evil,”  _ Jaemin says.

And they aren’t exaggerating either when they say they have some uncanny ability to make friends with devils disguised as angels. There’s no use in hiding it.

“Okay, now that we’re done calling us devils, back to my idea. Do I have the green light?” Renjun says.

_ “I won’t advise you not to do it. If you’re thinking what I think you are thinking then please continue, you have the green light from me,” _ Jaemin responds.

_ “We promised that we wouldn’t cause a scene here but I’m sure they’d understand under these circumstances so you have the green light from me as well. Jeno and I will make sure he has a drink and is distracted so you can do what you have to do,” _ Mark says.

That’s all he needed, the okay from their eldest and the okay from their chemist. 

He knows he said he shouldn’t let Ahn affect him majorly anymore but it wouldn’t hurt to give his final goodbye to this idolism he had of the man with some fun revenge.

“I’m coming in then. I hope someone records this,” Renjun says, cleaning up his mess and getting himself together.

_ “I’m way ahead of you. I’m ready to record at any given moment,” _ Jeno says.

Renjun smiles to himself.

It’s time to end this night off on a good note.

He gets out of the car and after making sure it’s locked and everything, he heads inside once again, dropping off his trash and holding the vial close to him.

_ “Guys, our resident techie has entered the building and he’s back in the game,” _ Jisung says proudly.

“And I’m ready to play. Let’s end this night off DREAM style,” Renjun responds.

He walks straight back to his table after noticing that most people are still up and about socializing. 

_ “You only have so many more minutes before one of the olders realize you’re back. His drink is on the table, the wine glass in front of his seat. He left to go to the bathroom after Jeno ‘accidentally’ spilled water on him as you were coming in. We’re distracting the hyungs now so move quickly,” _ Mark says.

“Copy that. I’ll be done in a minute,” Renjun responds.

When he reaches his table, he notices that there is only one wine glass on the table that has liquid in it, no doubt his friends cleaned up a bit for simplicity sake. It’s a good thing that the table is really just them, it makes it easier to control what’s on it.

With a fluid motion, he opens the vial and pours the liquid in the glass. It’s frightening how undetectable the liquid is inside the drink. Being drugged is such a serious threat and it’s a slightly concerning mystery as to why Jaemin is so good at creating these types of things.

“This is going to be interesting,” Renjun says with an interested smirk before pocketing the vial once more.

He casually walks away from the table, heading over to where Jeno is along with Doyoung and Jaehyun. It doesn’t take long for Jeno to spot him and gives him a smile.

“Oh thank god you’re back.  **_I_ ** was getting ready to give him a piece of my mind if you didn’t return soon,” Doyoung says, pulling Renjun into a hug when he’s close enough.

“I thought Sicheng hyung already did that. Don’t worry, I feel a bit better. Taeil-ssi talked with me,” Renjun responds.

Doyoung and Jaehyun chuckles.

“I still find that ironic but it makes a lot of sense that he went. It’s good that he was able to help you. Also, Sicheng indeed did go off but it was in Chinese and he had a smile on his face while doing so. We couldn’t stop him from doing it,” Jaehyun says.

“I have it recorded by the way. I think those Chinese celebrities Lele wanted their autograph from saw and heard because one snorted, another one choked on their drink, and the last stared with wide eyes. On the bright side, I got their autographs when hyung finished,” Jeno says.

Renjun makes a note to make sure he watches the video and to meet the celebrities for himself. He is also a fan of them, not a major one but enough to want to meet them.

He doesn’t get a chance to say anything else because he is pulled back and turned around quickly, meeting face to face with his worried elder.

“Are you alright? Did you do anything stupid? Do you want to leave? I can get ice cream and movies now. Do you need me to fight him? I’ll go fight him right now,” Sicheng says in quick succession, looking over the younger while doing so.

Renjun tries not to smile in this rare moment of Sicheng not being awkward and unintentionally aloof. His elder is straight up weird at times but usually calm. It makes him smile to see him so worked up over him.

“I’m okay hyung, I was insulted not assaulted. My feelings and pride are hurt but other than that I’m okay. Taeil-ssi had a nice conversation with me that made me feel better. You do not have to fight him; you don’t want to cause a scene right? Don’t worry about him,” Renjun replies.

Someone clears their throat behind Sicheng and Renjun moves to see that Mark and Taeyong are there waiting patiently behind the older Chinese male.

“I’d like to make sure he’s okay too. I was really worried you were going to go MIA on us,” Mark says.

Sicheng lets go of Renjun and Mark steps closer to him.

“I was but after talking with Taeil-ssi I remembered that I couldn’t do that to you guys. You guys believe in my work and you guys are more important to me so screw what he thinks,” Renjun responds.

“That’s a good way to look at it. We all know you’re a great programmer. He’s just stupid,” Taeyong says.

‘Stupid and about to be wasted’ Renjun adds in his mind.

They continue to talk for a few minutes, everyone clearly happy to see Renjun in a better mood. It all only lasts for a few minutes because a loud cackle pulls the entire room out of its conversation.

All eyes turn and land on the source of the noise: a seemingly drunk Ahn Si-woo.

He has an empty wine glass in his hand that a waiter is trying to politely take away from him. But he just holds on to the glass with his arm thrown around the poor waiter’s shoulder, laughing as if they were the best of buddies.

Jeno snickers and lifts up his phone to start recording.

“Damn that stuff works fast,” Mark mumbles under his breath.

Though adding this to a list of reasons why Jaemin’s abilities are slightly scary and worrying, Renjun can already tell that this is going to be hilarious.

“It seems the jerk had the nerve to get drunk. And what do you know, he’s a wild one,” Renjun says aloud, snickering himself.

At this point, a second waiter had come to try and help the first, gently trying to talk to Ahn into releasing the waiter and the glass.

It doesn’t work well in their favor though.

Ahn gives the empty glass to the first waiter and grabs the second one by the hands. Then he starts to dance to imaginary music with the poor trapped waiter.

The three youngers can’t help but laugh a bit at the scene. They know that looks a bit weird but they’re teens/young adults. People expect teens to act like this.

Though that doesn’t mean no one catches on to why they’re really laughing.

Sicheng turns to Renjun with a look.

“你做了什么  _ (What did you do) _ ?” The older asks in Chinese.

Renjun gives him his angelic smile with a shrug of his shoulders.

“我不知道你想表达什么意思  _ (Literal translation: I don’t know what you’re trying to say~ in other words: I don’t know what you mean) _ ,” Renjun responds.

Sicheng sighs and flicks him on his forehead.

“我们稍后会讨论这个问题  _ (We’ll discuss this later) _ ,” he says.

_ “Yes, thank you Chenle for that word for word translation as if you were a story narrator. What would we do without you,” _ Donghyuck says, causing the others to laugh.

The scene in front of them continues, Ahn dancing and grabbing anyone he can along with him. He’s out of it clearly and it makes them wonder if he’s usually this bad of a drunk or this has something to do with the liquid they put in his drink.

“Can this man not cause any trouble tonight? I knew I shouldn’t have listened to my father when he said to invite him,” Jaehyun says, rubbing his temples.

Some guests seem disturbed by the drunk man, others seem entertained, and still others don’t know how to view the situation. The three boys, however, find it extremely funny.

“Don’t worry Jaehyun-ssi, he’s bound to give out soon. Anyone that drunk can’t possibly keep going for long,” Jeno says, still recording the scene in front of him.

_ “Oh yes, he’s going to give out REAL soon,” _ Jaemin says.

While a part of them do feel bad because this is disrupting the event more than they thought it would, the other half of them is enjoying every minute of this. This is probably the lightest revenge they’ve ever given a person but it sure is also the funniest.

“You three are terrible,” Doyoung says to the youngers.

Renjun nods, Jeno shrugs, and Mark has the decency to give a half-guilty smile.

“We actually left the real devils at home,” Mark responds.

_ “It was Renjun’s idea though!” _ Said devils say over the line.

No one gets a chance to respond though because the sound of Ahn’s body hitting the floor stops everything in their tracks. He’s unnervingly still compared to how he was seconds prior to falling.

“Great. Now I have to have security remove him and find a way to get him home. God this man is such a hassle,” Jaehyun says, taking out his phone.

As he goes to take care of that situation, the three elders give parental looks to their charges.

“We’ll let it slide considering what happened but you said you guys wouldn’t cause a scene,” Taeyong says.

“Well technically we didn’t, he did. But let’s talk about that later, there’s still some time to enjoy the night after that entertaining show,” Renjun replies.

The three elders shake their heads but leave it alone anyway. They can’t really say they’re surprised. They’d be more surprised if their charges didn’t do anything to the rude man.

They decide to continue on with their night, going off to talk to more people and bringing back the sense of normality that was there before Ahn went crazy drunk.

The rest of the night goes well and they don’t end up leaving until around ten o’clock.

“We told your parents that you guys are spending the night at Jaemin’s house tonight since we figured that you probably want to do the rest of your work together. We already have your sleepover travel bags in the trunk along with Hyuck’s, Lele’s, and Sungie’s thanks to Johnny, Kun, and Ten,” Taeyong says to the boys when they’re in the car and driving back.

Days like this they really appreciate how their elders look out for them. They help them so much, even after they found out about DREAM; more so actually. They were just planning to crash at Jaemin’s house without informing their parents or just leaving really late in the night after they finished. But now they don’t have to do either because their nannies told their parents they’re having a sleepover.

A much needed sleepover after what happened tonight.

“Jaemin asks if anyone informed his parents,” Jeno says.

“Yuta did. He doesn’t have to worry about anything,” Doyoung replies.

“Thanks guys,” Mark says.

It doesn’t take them long to reach back to Jaemin’s house. The three boys get out and grab their bag along with one other bag to bring in. Renjun makes sure to grab his laptop too.

“Call us if you need us. No more stunts tonight. We’ll pick you guys up later tomorrow if you need us to,” Sicheng says.

“Okay, no problem. Thanks again for tonight,” Renjun responds.

They say their goodbyes and head inside. The moment they step foot in the door, they're almost tackled by the four.

“At least let us put the stuff down first,” Jeno says, smiling.

“Just throw it all somewhere. It’s time to celebrate and make up for this crazy night,” Donghyuck says.

They do just that and drop the bags on the floor. They’ll get it all when they need it but for now they won’t worry about that.

“If you guys don’t mind, I want to get started on deciphering the information I have. It’s going to take a while so I at least want to get started on it,” Renjun says, gesturing to his laptop in his hands.

“We’ll give you two hours but then you have to join us for sweets and games. You are not staying up all night working,” Jaemin responds.

While it won’t accomplish a lot, two hours can get some things done so he’ll take it. Besides, he should spend the night having fun with his friends. After all, DREAM just completed a mission with only three people on scene. That’s a big accomplishment that needs to be celebrated.

“Got it, two hours,” Renjun says.

He takes a seat on the couch and immediately gets to work, planning on making good use of those two hours.

The others head off to get things ready. Jeno and Mark go to change into something more comfortable. Chenle and Jisung go to gather the games and sweets. Jaemin and Donghyuck go and grabs blankets and pillows—which will be moved upstairs when they’re ready to go to bed—to use while they’re eating and gaming. When they gathered everything, they just sit down in the living room, doing their own things silently as their techie works.

Forty-five minutes into their comfortable silence, Renjun pops up.

“What the actual hell?!” He shouts.

The others get up and move closer to him.

“What’s wrong? Is it not working?” Mark asks.

Renjun scrolls through whatever he’s looking at to double check what he saw.

“No, you guys won’t believe this. I can’t believe I wasted years of my life on this,” he says.

They can’t tell if he’s frustrated or just shocked or maybe another emotion. They’re going to say a mixture of all three.

“What is it?” Jisung asks.

Renjun turns his laptop to them even though they won’t really understand what’s on the screen.

“The bastard is a fake. This programming is just a combination of other people’s work. While it is hard to combine different programs and it takes some skills to do it properly, it’s child's play compared to actually creating a program. First of all, the security on his stuff sucks. I was wondering why I was able to get into his phone so easily. But this takes the cake considering it only to me forty-five minutes to get through all of this. Secondly, his work is so good because he’s taking the best of other people’s stuff, that are recognizably different if I may say, and putting them together. He can’t actually program to save his life,” Renjun exclaims.

Years and years of looking up to this man’s work and it turns out that even he is better than that fake. At least he can actually create his own program.

Renjun lets out a sarcastic chuckle.

“No wonder the prick insulted my work. He was mad that he couldn’t do it himself. My parents should take lessons from him, that’s a real businessman right there,” he says.

Mark puts a comforting hand on his shoulder and Jaemin gives him a hug.

“We’re sorry Injunnie. We know how much this meant to you,” Jeno says.

Renjun rubs his face to release the tension in it. He can’t believe this mess.

“What are you going to do?” Chenle asks.

What is he going to do? He’s obviously not going to use this when he can create better. Besides, that’s other people’s stolen work. It’s most likely the people he ruined he stole from.

Suddenly, he gets an idea.

Renjun pulls his face out of his hands with a devious smirk.

“I’m going to run him into the ground,” he says.

Though the others don’t have a clue as to what he is planning, the look on his face tells them that this is going to be good.

“They do say revenge is the best dish,” Donghyuck says.

Renjun looks back over the work in front of him, his idea unraveling clearly in his mind. It’s the perfect payback for this imposter.

“Ahn Si-woo, you are going down.”

* * *

 

Two weeks later there are a few headlines taking over the media.

**“AHN SI-WOO, COMPUTER PROGRAMMER, IS A THIEF AND A FAKE.”**

**“AHN SI-WOO FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY EVEN AFTER SELLING EVERYTHING.”**

**“AHN SI-WOO IS CHARGED FOR TAX EVASION AND THEFT.”**

And with each new headline, Huang Renjun chuckles to himself pleased.

“I hope you enjoy the limelight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any translation errors on that Chinese part.


	6. I'm here

In a rare occasion, the boys haven’t seen the secretaries in about a month and some change.

Their parents haven’t even come home in that time, which is surprising since they always come back at least once a week to make sure the house isn’t destroyed or to give smothering attention to their kid if your name is Park Jisung or Zhong Chenle before ignoring them for another period. Even if they don’t stay the night, they come back to pick up work or check on the servants or to at least make sure their heir to the company is breathing. It doesn’t happen often where they don’t show up at all for a month straight if they aren’t traveling, which they aren’t.

But they aren’t really worried about their parents. Their parents are probably just in their work homes—separate homes they live in when they believe their kid will distract them from work or whatever other excuses they use—working their behinds off and pretending as if they have no children at all.

They are worried about the secretaries though. Even when their parents go traveling for work, the secretaries either stay here or call every day they’re gone to make sure everyone is alive and breathing. No matter how long their parents can disappear for, the secretaries always check in on them, especially after they found out about DREAM. So the fact that they haven’t heard from them once in the period of a month worried them. 

So the boys decided to do something about that. After making sure that the secretaries aren’t dead or in anything serious, they decided to go to their parents to get the elders a full day off.

After a logical debate with his father—how they decide most things since debating is in their blood—Mark was able to get a day off for Taeyong.

Since Renjun’s parents are still proud and happy with him—though they don’t know all of the details, they do know that he is responsible for Ahn’s downfall and are extremely proud that their son did that—they gave Sicheng the day off immediately once he asked.

Jeno promised to be his mother’s model for an upcoming show, something even his father was surprised about since they don’t suggest to model for her before everything in the show is planned. The woman goes crazy with ideas so it’s best to stay off to the side and let her do what she has to do and then once everything is done then they offer their services. But to get Doyoung that needed day off, he doesn’t mind dealing with his mother.

Donghyuck pulled the brat card out and acted like a rich stubborn brat until his parents gave Johnny the day off. He doesn’t do that often  but it is effective and never fails to work when he does do it.

In a rare occasion, Jaemin approached his parents with strictly medical facts as to why Yuta needs a day off to relax. Though he does stray away from his parents' field, that doesn’t mean he’s completely clueless on it. He’s actually very knowledgeable in the med field and will show his knowledge in rare moments especially if it’s to sway his parents.

Chenle just went up to his parents and told them with a little whine that the other secretaries got a day off so why can’t Kun. With a little pout, since his parents do have a soft spot for him, and a reminder that the others can’t be better than him, he got his parents approval for Kun to have a day off, two if he needs it just to be better than the others.

Precious Jisung did what he did best and went up to his parents while they were working and used an angelic look. Half focused on their work and half focused on their son, they said yes to giving Ten the day off because they still see him as this innocent five-year-old who couldn’t ask for anything bad. Honestly, they would give him anything as long as he asks while they’re working and with a sweet look on his face. They aren’t really paying him attention.

After they all succeeded in getting the secretaries a day off, they decided to do something else for them.

Which leads them to now as they wait for the elders to arrive at Jaemin’s house, surprise ready and waiting with them.

When the doorbell rings, they all scramble around making sure everything is in place for one last time, no one going to get the door but Jaemin—they do not want to be on the receiving end of a glare from him.

When they are sure everything is in place, they give Jaemin the thumbs up to open the door.

Jaemin opens the door and is greeted by all seven secretaries in casual clothing, something they don’t see often.

“Come in, come in. You guys took forever to come,” Jaemin says, welcoming them in.

Yuta looks at his watch.

“We’re here exactly at the time you told us to be,” he says.

Jaemin brushes it off and pushes him in, the others following along.

“YOU’RE HERE!” 

The boys jump up and shout, surprising them, and running to tackle them in a hug.

The olders laugh in surprise and affection as the youngers swarm around them like playful puppies.

“What’s all of this about? Are you guys the cause of this spontaneous day off we were given?” Johnny asks with a chuckle.

“Of course we are. You guys are going to spend the entire day with us and have fun for once,” Chenle says.

“You guys do remember what that is right?” Renjun says with a smirk.

In the nick of time, he avoids the flick that was coming his way from Sicheng for his smart comment.

“Come on, it’s already noon. The first item on our list today is lunch together,” Mark says.

The youngers grab their respective “nanny’s” hand and begin to pull them to the dining room that is very scarcely used.

“I cooked most of the food but I received some help. Don’t worry, we didn’t let Mark or Jeno anywhere near the kitchen,” Jaemin says.

“Oh good, that means we don’t have to worry about food poisoning or broken plates,” Taeyong jokes.

It’s no secret that Jeno and Mark are hazards in the kitchen. They’re clumsy and do not pay attention to what they are doing. Keeping out of the kitchen is always the best idea.

Ten raises his hand in defense of the two youngers.

“As a fellow bad cook, I take offense to that along with them. I may not be as clumsy as them but I am still offended,” he says as if he was defending the two, causing the others to laugh more.

“I don’t know if that was an attack at us or not but thanks I guess,” Jeno says with a funny unsure look on his face.

“Because it’s their day, let’s let it slide. The point is, lunch is prepared,” Mark says.

They all sit at the unnecessarily large dining table—with the extending function it can sit all fourteen of them comfortably—and they look like a family gathering around the table for a holiday dinner. The food and plates are already set along with the utensils and drinks.

“You boys really went out to prepare this,” Doyoung says.

“We wanted it to be just right. You guys deserve it,” Jisung says.

Yuta fake tears up and grabs Jaemin by the hand.

“Aww, I knew we raised you guys right. Our boys are so sweet,” he says dramatically.

Jaemin, being his charge after all, joins in on his dramatic scene and hugs the older tightly.

“Guys, this is it. We finally made them proud,” he says to his friends, only receiving eye rolls from them.

“I don’t know if Yuta hyung is a bad influence on Jaemin or if Jaemin is a bad influence on Yuta hyung. Either way, this needs to stop,” Renjun says.

They all laugh, agreeing with his comment. Even Jaemin and Yuta know they are dramatic but they take pride in their ability to keep their friends smiling and the mood light. Someone has to be the fun of the party after all.

They start to serve each other the food as if this was an actual family meal, which it might as well be since that’s what it feels like.

They eat and talk, catching up on all the missed time they had over this past month. They talk about how Donghyuck is finally getting out of anger management only to be put into vocal lessons that he does not need in the slightest. They discuss how Jisung is learning a new choreography and how it’s a secret for them until he perfects it and shows it at his showcase—his parents are one of the largest dance companies around so they frequently put on showcases to show off the talent the company has, Jisung usually being the star of each showcase so they can show off their son and make their names look good. They talk about how Chenle is progressing in his language studies and how he hopes to be out of them soon. It’s also thrown in that Jeno volunteered to model BEFORE his mother finished finalizing plans, causing Doyoung to feel eternally grateful to the younger.

It feels nice for them to just talk to each other and it not having to be about something serious like what their parents what them to do or the next mission they are planning that the elders are all going to be worried about no matter what.

When they finish with their lunch, Mark, Jaemin, Donghyuck, and Jeno clean up while Renjun, Chenle, and Jisung lead the others back into the living room before going to grab what they need.

“Alright, we can either have a movie marathon or a game marathon. We brought every game we thought we could beat you guys in and every movie that we made bets on who would break first. It’s up to you guys,” Chenle says.

“There better not be any horror movies in there! You know I don’t mess with ghosts; I live alone,” Jaemin shouts from the kitchen.

Chenle holds up a few horror movies and shows it to the others with a snicker. He made sure that he brought plenty of them just to bother Jaemin.

“I think we’ll choose the games,” Kun says, thinking of poor Jaemin and the last time they watched a scary movie together.

Chenle frowns as he puts down the movies.

“Aww no fun, I wanted to scare Jaemin again. You’re supposed to be on my side. And they say all of us are evil,” Chenle responds.

A thrown slipper hits him from behind. He turns around, rubbing his back, to see Donghyuck smiling.

“What was that for? You love horror movies and seeing Jaemin scared,” Chenle says.

Donghyuck goes over and grabs his thrown slipper, putting it back on his foot.

“I do but Jaemin said I could get out of cleaning if I hit you. Besides, an excuse to hit any of you is one I’m down for. Remember, you don’t know who loyalty is so neither do I,” Donghyuck replies.

Chenle glares at him but Donghyuck does what he does best and pays it no mind cheerfully.

“Umm, am I the only one wondering what Lele meant by saying ‘and they say we’re all evil’?” Ten asks.

In a flash, Mark, Jaemin, and Jeno appear out of the kitchen, making a grab for Chenle and Renjun at the same time Jisung and Donghyuck does from next to them, already seeing the mischievous glint in their eyes at the question.

The two Chinese boys see it coming though and rushes to their ‘nannies’, holding their arms with sweet smiles.

“Well, they all said that every Chinese friend they make is a devil in disguise. A real wolf in sheep’s clothing,” Chenle says sweetly.

“They even said how you two aren’t exempt from that despite being so nice to us. Jaemin specifically singled Kun hyung out while Mark singled Sicheng hyung,” Renjun adds.

Though they smile up to their elders, when they look towards their friends, Chenle gives a wicked grin and Renjun gives an evil smirk.

“Devils you say?” Sicheng says, looking at Kun with unspoken words traveling between them.

From behind, the others wave and gesture for the boys to either run or start apologizing now. Everyone knows that Renjun and Chenle learned a few of their tricks from their elders. When those two get into a devilish mood, no one is safe. 

“You don’t think I’m a devil, right Jaemin-ah? Especially not after I saved you from watching a horror movie marathon,” Kun asks sweetly.

Jeno, Jisung, and Donghyuck take a large step back like the traitors they are, leaving Jaemin and Mark in the front. Jaemin shakes his head no quickly, following Yuta’s silent advice from behind Kun.

“No no, of course not hyung. You’re absolutely sweet,” Jaemin says.

“How about you Markie?” Sicheng asks.

Mark gives a nervous smile.

“Of course I don’t. You took us on a mission, only a real angel would do that,” Mark replies.

“Then you wouldn’t mind letting us give you guys a nice big hug right?” Kun asks.

Mark and Jaemin gulp, knowing that that is not a good sign. They look to Chenle and Renjun who seem to be thoroughly enjoying the show.

“Okay, I get why Chenle would do this and why at Jaemin but what did I do to deserve this Injunnie?” Mark says with a pleading look.

Renjun shrugs.

“I’m bored and I’m included in those statements too. I’ll let you guys have ten seconds to run and hide before we let them go though,” he says.

He barely finishes the sentence before the two run away as they try to think of ways to placate the older two Chinese males. The other DREAM members follow suit, knowing that they are guilty as well.

Sicheng and Kun casually walk after them with sweet smiles on their faces after Renjun and Chenle let them go.

“You two really are evil,” Johnny says.

“We know,” they say at the same time with bright smiles.

The two just ready the gaming console, choosing the first game to play, as if nothing happened.

By the time Jeno, Donghyuck, Jisung, Mark, and Sicheng get back, the others have already played a full round, Chenle and Renjun indeed beating them.

“Where’s Jaemin and Kun?” Taeyong asks.

“Upstairs. Jaemin is being smothered,” Jeno replies.

“You all look awfully fine though,” Renjun says.

They give him a glare.

“We’re not,” the deadpan together.

They join in on the game, making sure that Chenle and Renjun are not the winners as payback for what they caused. Kun and Jaemin eventually rejoin the group midway through one of the rounds, the younger making sure to punch Chenle and Renjun in the arm while they were playing as retaliation.

Now that all of them are there, they start a real round, going all out and having fun. It’s been a while since the older ones in the room have gotten a chance to play video games so they’re having a blast doing so. The youngers are just really happy to see them let go and have some fun for today.

They play games for a few hours—the youngers weren’t kidding when they said a gaming  _ MARATHON _ —before finally taking a break by request of the older people in the room.

“It’s been a very long time since I sat in front of a TV for that long,” Doyoung says.

“In fair honesty, none of us have had the time to,” Yuta replies.

Donghyuck and Jaemin turn excitedly to each other.

“Ooo it’s trash talking time. Let’s go grab the ice cream,” Donghyuck says.

The two jump out of their seats and rush to grab the ice cream, returning somehow with 13 single pints of ice cream and one pint of sorbet.

“We bought one pint of each of our favorite flavors so hurry up and grab it before they drop,” Jaemin says.

They make moves to help the two out, grabbing a pint and then switching with each other for their favorite flavor. Jaemin runs back in the kitchen to grab spoons for everyone and then returns and settles down with his sorbet.

“Not saying we don’t appreciate it but why did you guys buy 14 pints of sweets and how did you fit all of these in your freezer?” Ten asks.

Donghyuck and Jaemin smile.

“What’s better to eat while complaining about your job and life than ice cream? Besides, some of us don’t like sharing so this makes it easier for us all,” Donghyuck says, throwing a look at some of his friends.

“As to how I fit it all in my freezer, it was like one big game of Tetris. That and the freezer is practically empty after all of the cooking we did,” Jaemin adds.

Everyone goes along with it and open up their chosen pint of ice cream.

“Alright then. What’s this about complaining?” Sicheng says.

This time Jeno speaks up saying, “It’s part of the schedule. You guys have been working so much so we thought you all needed a space to talk about your frustrations with work.”

After working for so much and being around the people their parents are, anyone would need a space and ice cream to vent about it afterward.

“I’m with Yuta, we really did raise them right,” Johnny says.

And that’s how a group session venting circle started, the youngers listening intently and secretly seeing if there are some things they can change to help out. Once the first complaint story started, the conversation took off naturally. There seems to be a lot that isn’t talked about.

“What about your latest project? It must be important if you guys were busy for a month,” Mark says.

The secretaries all groan at the same time and the youngers know that this is about to be quite the story.

“It’s only the worst thing ever. It can’t be over soon enough,” Kun groans.

“Tell us about it,” Jisung says.

They’re interested in what could cause a reaction like this from  _ ALL _ of them.

“We need alcohol for this story not ice cream,” Ten mumbles, receiving an elbow from Taeyong.

“How he means to start is your parents are about to host a very special and very annoying person and it’s drowning us in work,” Doyoung says.

“All of our parents? We didn’t hear anything about a special person coming and doing business with our parents.” Jeno says.

Usually when someone important comes or a big deal is about to happen, they overhear about it, whether from a servant or their parents themselves. This time, though, they didn’t hear a thing. And it clearly must be big if it can keep them busy for an entire month.

“Well really it’s just Jaemin’s and Donghyuck’s but when he comes, they all get involved,” Sicheng responds.

“Why? Who is he?” Chenle asks.

A frown appears on all of the elders’ faces. Clearly, whoever the person is, they really don’t like him.

“He’s part of their other activities. We don’t know much about what he does but we do know that without him, your parents would be kissing a lot more ass and bribing a lot more people so they can’t afford to lose him. He’s influential, to say the least, and honestly, that may be an understatement. His name is Choi Minsun, he’s twenty-eight and is the bane of anyone sane’s existence. He took over his father’s position in whatever it is that they do so he feels entitled. He comes for business every once in a while under the pretense of doing legal interactions with whoever he’s working with that time,” Johnny explains.

“Last time he was pretending to be interested in joining Jisung’s parents' company, making me personally set up his room with everything to specific orders and then canceling it all when they finished whatever they had to do. This time, he’s doing a photoshoot with Donghyuck’s parents' magazine company as a cover-up,” Ten adds.

The youngers have definitely never heard of this Choi Minsun before. They haven’t even seen him in any of their parents’ records of clientele. Whatever he does must really be a part of their illegal actions.

“You all sound like you hate him, why?” Renjun asks.

The olders all put down their ice cream as if they are really about to start gossiping and that’s how the youngers know that it’s about to get serious.

“He’s the absolute worst. When he was doing work with Jeno’s mother, I had to deal with him calling me at all hours of the night to get him things because ‘he’s not supposed to do menial work when there are servants for that’,” Doyoung says, mocking him scornfully.

“The last time he came, he left me waiting at the airport for three hours only to then call me and say he took a different car over and if I wasn’t a stupid American, I would have known that already,” Johnny say with a scowl.

“I already explained to you what he did to me,” Ten says with a huff.

“He saw a picture of my younger sister and said he’d screw her if she wasn’t Japanese but then proceeded to ask me for my older sister’s number,” Yuta says, forcing his jaw not to clench.

“I unfortunately actually went to college with him and he was my roommate. That’s really how Mark’s parents got to know him because I went to a reunion and he was there causing hell. I can assure you that he hasn’t changed in years. He used to throw up on my bed after spending the night getting drunk,” Taeyong says plainly.

Sicheng sits there quietly, eyes burning in anger from whatever memory is in his head. Kun seems to already know, quiet anger hidden in his eyes as well.

“What did he do to you hyung?” Renjun asks carefully.

Sicheng huffs and his frown deepens.

“The last time I had to drive him everywhere and get him everything as if I was  _ his _ secretary. He told me to go get him an iced coffee as if I was some unpaid intern and when I returned, he poured it all over my head because it didn’t have enough ice,” Sicheng says, practically hissing toward the end of his statement.

“I was there because I was also working along with them. As Sicheng was cleaning up, he sent me to go get a new coffee from a completely different place halfway across town. By the time I got back, he already had a coffee and told me I took too long and then proceeded to pour the coffee I got everywhere on the floor, leaving me to clean it up,” Kun says, clenching his fists.

The worst part of it all was that they couldn’t do anything about it. They had to be good secretaries if they wanted to keep their jobs, which they did.

“Okay, I officially hate this guy. Who the hell does he think he is?” Donghyuck says, angrily putting his spoon in his ice cream.

“Why haven’t we ever heard of him?” Jeno asks.

Considering all of the things he has done to the secretaries and how important he apparently is to their parents, it really is a surprise that they have never heard about him before.

“We were trying to spare you guys the misfortune of knowing anything about him but whatever your parents are planning this time seems to be more important and time-consuming than the other times. They just like to suck up to him so no one has the advantage over the other. He isn't very popular or important in the legal world though,” Johnny says.

“Our parents are the literal definition of fake friends,” Chenle says, rolling his eyes.

Their parents are always trying to get ahead of one another but they’re the own little friend group. Honestly, if their parents weren’t so close then none of them would be friends today. Luckily though, they aren’t two-faced like their parents.

“So I see what he’s doing with Hyuck’s parents but how are mine involved? It’s kinda hard for him to pretend to do business with a hospital,” Jaemin says.

“I don’t know and frankly I don’t think I want to know. All I am aware of is that I have to pick him up at the airport in two days and it’s going to be a very big struggle for me to not punch him,” Yuta responds.

They make a mental note to buy Yuta a gift if he actually succeeds in not punching the man because from what they’re being told, that is going to take a lot of self-control. Enough to the point where it needs to be rewarded.

“So you mean to tell us that this pitiful excuse of a person who noticeably causes hell for everyone is coming in to do who knows what illegal business with our parents and you guys have to take the brunt of it and still have to be good and polite,” Mark sums up as if he heard the most ridiculous story in his life.

“That is a good way of summarizing it all. The only good from this is that we get generous bonuses for dealing with him because even your parents know that he’s terrible. But they need him so they aren’t going to say anything about that,” Taeyong responds.

The youngers feel bad for the secretaries. They don’t think they could deal with a person like that and still be polite, on multiple occasions at that. Hell, Renjun drugged a person after he got rude with him so that should speak volumes for their tolerance level.

“We’re sorry you have to deal with that. When this guy leaves, we’re having another fun day together. Or we could go out, whatever you guys prefer,” Chenle says.

The elders give them a soft look, one they have seen a few times before.

Jeno, Jisung, and Mark visibly back away at the look, Renjun, Chenle, and Donghyuck pretend to be disgusted at the look, and Jaemin opens his arms wide open in response.

“Oh no, we know what that look means. Don’t encourage them, Nana. We’ll never hear the end of it or get out of their holds,” Renjun says.

Soft looks mean they’re feeling all proud and/or parental which means being suffocated in affection. They all secretly like it, Jaemin loving it isn’t really a secret, but they wouldn’t be themselves if they welcomed it readily.

“Yah, come here you brats,” Ten says as all the elders reach forward to grab them.

Laughter and squeals feel the air as the youngers are tackled and smothered in affection. 

Now, this is the type of day they all deserved to have.

* * *

 

It’s been a week and a half since the boys last saw or heard from the secretaries. 

The last time they heard from the olders was when Yuta went to go pick up Choi Minsun from the airport and then proceeded to rant because the man had thrown his carry-on luggage at him to catch and put in the car. It was confirmed then that this was going to be another long visit they are going to have to suffer through.

But since then, they haven’t heard a word from anyone so it’s probably safe to assume that a lot of work is being done and there’s very little time to rest. Hell, they haven’t even found a chance to see their parents to ask about how the secretaries are faring. They have to say, this is a lot of time and energy being put into the comfort of one person. This really must be important.

It’s a shame that they forgot that no news is good news.

_ Ring Ring _

“Jaem, your phone is ringing,” Jeno calls, not looking up from the game he’s playing against Donghyuck and Jisung, Chenle being the youngest personal cheerleader.

Jaemin comes from the kitchen, Renjun and Mark following him from behind. 

“Oh, you answer my phone every other time but now you don’t,” he says, grabbing his phone next to the older.

Jeno waves off the remark with a smile causing the younger to roll his eyes.

“Hello,” Jaemin answers.

The change in his expression is almost instant.

“Jungwoo hyung, I need you to slow down. Who’s at the hospital? Who’s on their way over?” He says.

This catches the others’ attention, the boys pausing their game and turning to face him as Renjun and Mark move closer to him.

It’s silent for a bit which means Jaemin is listening closely to whatever is being told to him. Suddenly, his hand grips the phone tighter. The way his face pales makes all of their stomachs turns.

“We’re on our way now. No one goes in that room unless it’s one of us or med staff okay. And if my parents get there before I do, stall them until I reach. I’ll be there soon,” he says.

He hangs up and runs his hand through his hair in nerves.

“What’s going on?” Mark asks.

The rare frown on the younger’s face is not a good sign. Jaemin makes it his job to stay lighthearted. Even if he’s in a bad mood, he tries to not show it so obviously so he doesn’t bring down the mood. So if he’s frowning with that look of anxiety on his face then it must not be good.

“We have to go to the hospital right now. Yuta hyung and Johnny hyung were in a car accident. Jungwoo hyung says the others are on their way over. We have to get there now,” he says.

That gets everyone going.

“What?!” Donghyuck shouts.

“What happened?” Renjun asks, concern written all over his face.

“Are they okay?” Jisung asks worriedly.

Jaemin doesn’t answer them immediately, going back to his phone to contact his personal driver. His parents are going to find out anyway, no need to hide him going by taking a taxi.

“I don’t know all the details yet so we have to go. The only way I’m going to be able to find out is if I get there before my parents. Now, let’s go, the driver will be here in five minutes,” he finally replies.

They don’t get a chance to ask any more questions because he’s already moving, heading upstairs to change quickly into something more suitable, more business casual.

After all, Na Jaemin cannot walk into his own family’s hospital looking like a regular teen.

With him out of their sight, the others finally start moving, shock letting go of them. They run around making sure they have the basics such as their phones and IDs.

By the time Jaemin comes down and everyone else is ready, the driver is already outside waiting for them.

They get in the car and Jaemin tells the driver which one of their hospitals they’re going and to get there fast. The driver does exactly that, avoiding traffic like a pro and making it to the hospital in record time.

They waste no time and head inside the hospital, Jaemin taking the lead because he knows where he’s going and no one dares to stop the son of the Na family.

When they reach the floor they are supposed to be on, a familiar face is waiting for them.

“You’re here. Your parents haven’t come yet, so I have some time to tell you things,” Jungwoo says, rushing to Jaemin.

Kim Jungwoo is a nurse at this hospital and probably the only one Jaemin trusts in this entire place or any of the other hospitals they own. Jungwoo is a genuine nurse who really cares about the patients. Not only that but the older is more loyal to him than he is to his parents.

Jungwoo begins to lead them to the room in a hurry.

“What happened and how are they?” Jaemin asks.

“Johnny hyung is conscious but has few scratches and bruises since he was in the passenger seat. Yuta hyung though is unfortunately unconscious and has the worst of the injuries. From what hyung told me, they were driving Mr. Choi somewhere but he felt they were taking a long way. So from the back of the vehicle, he reached forward and grabbed the wheel. The car swerved and another car ended up hitting it on the driver side. Mr. Choi barely has scratches on him but he is complaining as if he is the one who is unconscious with broken bones,” Jungwoo explains.

Jaemin and Donghyuck grab each other’s hand in an instinct, seeking comfort in each other’s touch.

“Will he be okay?” Jaemin asks, worry for his elder written all over his face and in his voice.

“He should be from what we can see now but we really have to wait until he wakes up to have more confidence in that. From what we can tell, he has a broken leg, a fractured rib bone, a bruise on his head so probably a concussion, and a fractured wrist. As of this moment, no surgery seems to be needed,” Jungwoo answers.

A sickening feeling crawls through them as they hear the list of injuries. This was a really serious accident. If they were worried before then they are almost panicking now. Jungwoo says that he’ll be okay but it’s kinda hard to believe with those injuries.

They reach the room and the youngers look at each other with uncertain looks. They may have an idea of what to expect but nothing is like seeing the actual thing.

“Are they both in here?” Donghyuck asks.

“Johnny hyung’s room is technically next door but he is currently sitting inside here. He refused to leave. If you can, can you please convince him to at least let me do his vitals? He really shouldn’t be out of bed yet but I understand,” Jungwoo says.

They nod in response.

“Come on guys, we can do this,” Mark says as confidently as he can, his voice betraying him a bit though.

Donghyuck and Jaemin don’t let go of each other, this situation worrying them the most. They’re going to do this together though. They’re ALL going to do this together.

Jeno is the one to open the door for them and they all walk in.

They immediately see is an unconscious Yuta lying on the bed with Johnny sitting on the side, watching him as if he the younger is going to wake up any moment now.

Jaemin’s breath hitches as he stares at the bed. Memories of his own injury fill his mind and it makes him anxious. He hates hospitals. He hates the idea of someone lying in a bed all day in pain. He hates that a patient can lay there and never know when they will be better. He hates all of this.

A comforting hand rests on his shoulder and he turns to Jeno giving him a reassuring the look. The older knows better than anyone else how much Jaemin hates the hospital, him being the one who spent the most time with Jaemin when he was the one in the bed for weeks. He knows how Jaemin feels right now.

“Hyung?” Donghyuck calls out to Johnny.

Johnny finally turns away from Yuta and looks at the youngers standing at the edge of the room uncertainly.

“Hyuck. Guys, you’re here. Is anyone else here?” Johnny says, gesturing for them to come closer.

They do so, admittedly hesitantly.

“No, it’s just us for now but they’ll be here really soon,” Jaemin responds.

Jaemin can’t seem to take his eyes off of Yuta lying in the bed in front of him. All he can think about is how much pain the older is going to be in when he wakes up. There are so many complications that can happen with a fractured rib. He won’t be able to walk properly for some time with a broken leg. There are just too many things to worry about and Jaemin hates it.

Johnny notices the younger’s gaze and sighs.

“I’m sorry Jaemin. We tried to get the car back under control but it all happened too quickly. I don’t even know who called the ambulance. All I remember is trying to reach him after we got hit and then arriving at the hospital. The spaces in between are blurry,” Johnny says.

Jaemin finally turns away from Yuta and looks at Johnny.

“There’s nothing to apologize for hyung. It wasn’t either of you guys fault. I’m just really glad that you’re okay. But you do know you have to let the nurse take your vitals and stuff so they can confirm that you’re alright, right?” Jaemin responds.

Donghyuck gives Johnny a pout in addition to Jaemin response.

“He’s right hyung. I’m going to be so mad at you if you don’t let them check on you more. I need to make sure that you’re going to be okay,” he says.

Johnny gives the two a half smile.

“Fine fine, I’ll let Jungwoo check on me so don’t get mad at me and stop pouting Hyuck. I know he told you guys to tell me so I’ll do it,” he says.

Just then, the room door opens once more and in rushes Sicheng and Ten followed by Taeyong, Doyoung, and Kun. Sicheng immediately walks to Yuta’s side along with Kun and Doyoung while Ten and Taeyong rush over to Johnny.

The youngers excuse themselves from the room, giving the olders space to talk. They can imagine how they feel. They’re as close friends as the youngers are with each other so they know they’re all a step away from completely freaking out. So they need the time together.

The hallways are quiet, the few sounds coming from the staff moving back and forth between patients’ rooms.

The silence doesn’t last long.

“Mr. Choi please calm down. You cannot enter other patients’ rooms.”

They all turn at the sound of Jungwoo’s voice and see the older with a stressed look on his face following after a young man who looks a bit older than Johnny.

“Tell me where those idiotic secretaries are. It’s because of them my gorgeous face is ruined,” the man, presumably Choi Minsun, says.

His eyes land on Jaemin and he seems to find what he was looking for.

“Hey you, kid. You’re the Na’s kid. Is this that useless secretary’s room?” He says as he approaches them.

Jaemin schools his face into a professional expression as the man approaches him.

“I’m going to ask you to refrain from insulting him. Who are you if I may ask,” Jaemin says.

“I’m Choi Minsun, you should know that, boy. And I can say whatever I want about him. It’s because of his terrible driving that I’m in this place. I’m going to give him a piece of my mind. I hope your parents fire him. Foreigners are so useless,” the man who is now confirmed to be Choi says.

Jaemin tries very hardest to keep a neutral face. No story can prepare you for how toxic this man really is in person.

“Well Mr. Choi, Yuta-ssi is unconscious because you grabbed the wheel which led to the crash. You cannot enter his room or any other patient’s room for that matter so please stop causing a hassle for the staff. I can assure you that you are fine and will be released soon in good condition,” Jaemin responds in a professional tone.

How dare this man try to blame Yuta for this? Here he stands with barely any scratches on him while Yuta lies in a bed unconscious with broken bones and a possible concussion all because of him. He’s well enough to cause a ruckus but he wants to complain because of a few scratches? The audacity this man has is unbelievable.

Mr. Choi surprisingly smirks at Jaemin.

“You have a lot of bite when you’re not lying in a hospital bed I see,” he says.

The comment catches Jaemin off guard, confusion and irritation slipping onto his face.

“I beg your pardon?” He asks.

“Oh come on, you really don’t remember me? I came to visit you late at night when you were laying in that hospital bed crying your eyes out about your back. I’m hurt kid, I did you and your parents a huge favor then,” Choi responds.

Jaemin tries to figure out what this man is talking about. He doesn’t remember his face at all and he’s sure he would remember if he met someone as irritating as this. He doesn’t recall this man in the slightest.

Choi, seeming to know this, responds to his confusion saying, “Think very hard now Jamie. I’m sure your mother wouldn’t appreciate you forgetting who I am like this.”

The nickname immediately strikes a memory in his head.

_ “Hush now Jamie, you’ll be okay. Mommy will make sure of it,” his mother said to him as if he was five again. _

_ But he couldn’t stop crying. Not when his back was killing him like this. Not when she was carding her hand through his hair as if she really cared that he was in pain. _

_ Not when there was that man standing by his bed, looking at him with a twisted smirk as if he wasn’t standing in a hospital room with a patient in pain. _

_ “Your mother is right. You’re seventeen right? You’re fine so stop crying Jamie,” the man says, mocking his mother’s nickname for him. _

Jaemin comes back to the real world when a pair of fingers snap in front of his face. He focuses back and notices Choi staring him down, trying to get him back to focusing on him.

As his eyes focus, Jaemin’s entire demeanor changes. His always so emotion-filled face slowly drops and morphs into a completely expressionless look. His eyes dull until they look dead but yet somehow they’re still staring sharply at the person in front of him. His posture becomes rigid considerably but no emotion comes across from the movement. The air around him just feels still.

“What do you know, you remember me now,” Choi says with an amused tone.

Jaemin looks over his shoulder to his friends to catch their expression. Confusion and anger is a common thread between them. Jeno, however, makes eye contact with him, an unspoken message is sent between them.

Before anyone can say anything, the sound of high heels quickly clicking against the floor turns the attention away.

“There you are.”

The voice comes from none other than Dr. Na Eun-Ae, otherwise known as Jaemin’s mother.

She approaches the group, Jungwoo and the others giving her a respectful bow. Jaemin, though, just stares at his mother with the same dead look that fell onto his face.

“Oh, Jaemin you’re here as well. Have you checked on Mr. Choi already for us?” She asks.

Of course she would ask about her damn client first. Not about her son or her secretary, no, the stupid cause of all of this.

“I am not here to check on him, mother. I did not know he was in the car when I arrived. I’m here to check on Yuta-ssi who is unconscious currently and Johnny-ssi,” he responds, attempting to remain respectful.

His voice itself doesn’t hold emotion though. It’s barren. Empty. Dead.

Choi steps to the side so Mrs. Na can see him better.

“Oh he’s so mean to me, he didn’t even remember me until I reminded him. He even told me that I’m in good condition. Do you see my face? It has scratches on it, this is not good condition. You need to fire that secretary of yours. His bad driving is the reason why I’m here,” he says.

Mrs. Na briefly glances to Jaemin, seemingly looking for something, before turning back to the man in front of her.

“Please excuse Jaemin, you know how teens can be at times. I am here to make sure that you will be perfectly fine by the time you leave here. I heard the entire story of the crash already, do not worry. I can assure you that Yuta is usually better. We’ll assign you a new driver in his stead,” she responds.

Choi seems to be satisfied with the response and smirks in response. 

Mrs. Na turns back to Jaemin and says, “Your father will be here to check on Yuta. If it will make you feel better, I’ll have someone update you periodically on his condition throughout his entire recovery.”

Jaemin’s expression, or lack of it, doesn’t change. Instead, he nods.

“Yes, it will. Thank you, mother. If you’ll excuse me for a moment, I have to make a call,” he says.

No one is able to stop him or say anything in response because he already walks away, leaving them to think about the sudden flow of air now that he has left; the completely opposite effect he always has on a space.

Mrs. Na doesn’t seem to mind or notice the change. 

“If you would, follow me this way so I can begin your checkup,” she says to Choi.

The two walk away and the words ‘good riddance’ are not said but all of them standing there think of.

Jungwoo lets out a sigh, looking more exhausted than he did when they first saw him today.

“He seriously is a nuisance. I hope he is released very soon,” he says.

“For everyone’s sake here, we hope so too,” Mark says with a frown on his face.

They don’t know how well Jungwoo knows Jaemin but they can tell immediately that something is not right with Jaemin right now. Jaemin’s emotions are almost always shown in some way, shape, or form. Even when he hides them, it’s still expressive in its own way. But what just happened was not that. That wasn’t normal. Something is wrong and it happened so quickly that they don’t have a clue of what.

“When Jaemin gets back, you all should go home. I’ll be sure to call you if anything comes up but for now, you guys should get away from all of this. I know how much Jaemin hates hospitals, he shouldn’t have to stay here any longer,” Jungwoo says.

“Yeah, that’s a good idea. I’m sure his driver is still downstairs. Please tell the others that we left,” Jeno says before anyone else can respond otherwise.

Even his demeanor seems a bit different. It’s nothing like Jaemin’s but he has a feeling to him that wasn’t there when they arrived. Maybe they do just need to go home.

Jungwoo nods. He then leaves them, heading into Yuta’s room.

It doesn’t take much longer for Jaemin to return. When he does come back, nothing about the emotionless look he had has changed.

“Come on Jaem, we’re going home. We’ll be called if anything comes up,” Jeno says.

Jaemin doesn’t respond but they know he isn’t disagreeing with the idea. Jeno grabs his hand and leads the younger out, the others following closely behind.

Together, they all leave the hospital feeling much different than the pure worry they entered with.

The ride back to Jaemin’s house is silent. No one says anything. But the closer they get to his home, the more Jaemin’s eyes seem to fill with something. An emotion finally reaches his eyes but it looks like nothing but chaos. They conclude that he is thinking of something and he’s thinking about it deeply.

It’s not until they’re finally back in his house, door closed and everyone standing in tense confusion, does it all snap.

“He has to die.”

It’s the first set of words out of Jaemin’s mouth but they’re heavy.

Everyone looks at him startled, worried, and confused.

“What was that?” Mark asks.

The emotions start to flood Jaemin’s expression again and it looks as if he doesn’t know to be angry or sad or maybe something else. It just looks strange to see as his calm composure slowly fades away.

No, fade is the wrong word. Chip. Crack. Break. All of those seem to describe it better.

“I said he has to die. We have to kill him. He doesn’t deserve to live,” Jaemin says.

Though his expression is unsteady, his tone is not. He’s resolute in what he is saying and he means it completely.

“I know he’s a jerk but that’s a far step to say he has to die. Besides, we’ve only done that once and it was half because of desperation. We can’t just do that all of a sudden,” Mark replies.

“He does have to. Look at how much trouble he causes for them. Look at what he did to Yuta hyung and Johnny hyung. Yeah we only did it once but that was when we first started. We’ve been doing this for close to two years now, we’re much better than we were then. We can do it,” Jaemin says.

His unspoken words, however, are ‘ _ I am desperate.’ _

The idea is so sudden to them though. They know the man is terrible and that he causes a lot of issues but is that really enough to say he deserves to be killed? Now more so than ever, they rack their brains trying to figure out what caused this change in Jaemin and when.

“Nana, we can’t just make that decision all of a sudden. Besides, even if we did agree to kill him, he’s too much in our parents’ notice. It wouldn’t be an easy job and if we did succeed they’re bound to look into his death more than the police. They need him, remember,” Renjun says.

“No! Not if. It’s  _ when _ we pull it off and they won’t ever find out that it was us. This is all the more reason to get rid of him. Our parents need him and what’s better than ruining another one of their illegal activities? We can do this. We have to do this,” Jaemin responds.

His calm demeanor is completely gone now. Anxious energy radiates from him and it’s clear his mind is working faster than ever before.

“Jaemin, stop and take a deep breath. You’re holding your shoulder again,” Jeno says, the only one who seems to be missing confusion on his face.

After Jaemin’s injury, Jaemin developed the habit of gripping onto his shoulder when he was stressed or anxious. Stress caused his newly healed back to ache in pain and applying pressure was the only way to lessen it immediately. His gripping of his shoulder was an attempt to soothe the pain he couldn’t reach. After that, it became a clear sign for them all when he was overwhelmed, even when he wasn’t in pain.

Jaemin lets go of his shoulder, almost reluctantly as if he was afraid to, and takes a shaky breath. He noticeably regains some of his composure after a few breaths but not much. It’s enough to let him talk calmly though.

“Look, I’m doing this with or without you guys no matter what. You may not agree with me or understand but Choi Minsun deserves to die and the world will be a better place without him here. I’m only telling you this because we’re a team but I will do this by myself if I have to,” Jaemin says.

His eyes seem tired now that they are no longer chaotic. It’s almost as if he’s drained that quickly.

The constant quick changes in his countenance worry them even more. It’s so unlike Jaemin to be this way. His emotions have always been strong but it’s always been one emotion. One emotion overpowering others. It’s always been a gradual change. It’s never been anything like this.

“Okay, okay so you’re serious about this and we apparently can’t change your mind. What would be your idea? This is such a risky thing that even if we all helped, it doesn’t seem possible for a good outcome in our favor,” Mark says.

Jaemin’s fingers twitch, as if he was waiting for that question. Maybe subconsciously he was.

“We make it seem like a natural death. He’s a habitual drinker, a chronic smoker, and an addicted drug user. He’s already on the path to heart failure, lung failure, and already had one accidental drug overdose at twenty-three. There are drugs and poisons that can make it look like he died from either one of those three,” Jaemin says.

The response rolls off his tongue so easily that it’s clear to see that he gave it a lot of thought in the short time he had to think about it.

“Wait, did you go through his medical records? Is that why you left?” Donghyuck asks.

Jaemin looks to him unbothered as he says, “Yes, yes I did. It’s my hospital so I have access to all of the patients’ record and no one can say otherwise. The point is, there are ways to kill him and no one will be suspicious. He’s staying in one of Chenle’s parents’ hotels which gives us easy access to him on top of that.”

Jaemin is more than serious about this idea and they see that now. He’s put more thought into this than they thought he did.

“You’re really going to do this no matter what?” Mark asks.

“Yes, I am,” Jaemin replies.

Silence passes through the room as it becomes an unintentional stare down between Jaemin and the others.

Finally, the silence breaks.

“Okay then, I’ll join you,” Jisung says.

The attention turns to him and everyone is surprised that he said that.

“Are you serious?” Jaemin asks unsure of the younger’s statement.

But Jisung nods in response.

“Yeah, I am. When I suggested we kill Mark hyung’s old instructor, you guys all looked at me like I was crazy but agreed in the end anyway despite doubts. So, then, I’m going to do the same for you. I’m in,” he says.

Relief passes through Jaemin’s eyes. He’s glad he doesn’t have to do this alone after all.

“I guess I’m in too. I’m not really understanding everything but I know you wouldn’t just suggest this without valid cause. So let’s do this,” Donghyuck says, making two people on board with the idea.

Mark sighs but it’s clear he’s made up his mind.

“Fine, I’m joining too. I’m with Hyuck when he says he doesn’t understand everything but when I was in distress you came for me so now it’s my turn to do that for you,” he says.

It’s a big step in his direction if Mark says he’s on board. Mark being the oldest and the most mature changes this from just being a spontaneous idea into something that can really become a job for DREAM.

“Count me in too. I trust you Nana so I’m not going to leave you to do this without as much help as possible,” Chenle says.

That makes four out of six on board in a short time. That’s more than he thought he would get.

“I don’t like this idea. I know we’re good but it’s so risky. What if we aren’t as good as we think we are? But my own idea was more half thought out than this and based off of a stupid idolizing of a phony at that and you still helped me out. So I’m in. We’re a team after all and we help each other even if we’re not sure about the idea,” Renjun says.

With his agreement settled, all eyes now turn to Jeno who is surprisingly the last one left. Usually, he’s the first one to go along with Jaemin even if he doesn’t agree fully. The fact that he is the only one left is shocking.

“Jeno?” Jaemin asks.

An unspoken message travels between the two and the others don’t seem to understand it just like everything else involved in this matter. 

“I’m not in. We can’t do this Jaemin and you know it,” he says, surprising everyone more.

No one expected that response from him. Even if they do still have their doubts, they’re a team and they always have each other’s backs. Not to mention, Jeno out of all people rarely ever lets Jaemin do an idea on his own, especially if it’s risky.

“We can do this. We have to do this,” Jaemin says.

“No, we can’t. You’re letting emotions override your logic and if that happens we fail. No one knows about drugs and medical conditions like you do so if you allow your emotions to control you, no one else here can catch a mistake in a drug you make. This has more risk to it than anything else we’ve ever done, we can’t afford to make careless mistakes. We can’t afford to let our emotions control us,” Jeno responds straightforwardly.

The two are in a face-off and none of the others have ever seen this before. They’ve never even heard Jeno talk to Jaemin this way.

“I won’t make a mistake, not on something like this. I know how dangerous this is to us. I know what I’m saying seems strange but I also know we can do this. I’ll make sure this goes well,” Jaemin says.

Jeno doesn’t respond but his face remains the same. He’s more than just hesitant with this idea but ironically, he seems to be the least confused about the entire thing. That fact doesn’t really surprise them though since Jeno is the closest with Jaemin. They’ve known each other since they were toddlers so Jeno knows what’s going on in the younger’s mind more oftentimes than they ever do.

The lack of response bothers Jaemin and for the first time, the inner desperation he has begins to show. He steps closer to Jeno, never breaking eye contact with the older, and grabs his hand.

“Please Jeno, we can’t do this without you.  **_I_ ** can’t do this without you. It’s a stupid idea based completely on emotions, I know, but please I need you to join. Please,” Jaemin begs, almost sounding helpless.

It’s only a minute that passes in silence but those sixty seconds feel like an eternity for everyone before Jeno finally speaks again.

“I’ll only join if you promise me that you won’t let your emotions outweigh your logic. We have to stay focus and clear if we’re going to succeed. Can you promise me that, Jaem?” Jeno says, tone much softer than before.

Tension they didn’t know was there releases from Jaemin’s shoulders as he nods his head yes in relief.

“I promise. I promise I’ll go about this logically. I’ll do everything I can to make sure we stay safe. I will, I promise I will,” Jaemin says.

Jeno pulls him in and Jaemin rests his head on his shoulder tiredly. Jeno holds the younger’s head with one hand. He looks to the others with a worried look finally reappearing on his face.

Maybe he was more affected by all of this than they thought he was because, clearly, with the look he’s giving, he’s very concerned for the younger resting in his embrace and this entire idea.

“Alright then, I’m in. DREAM has another job and we’ll all make sure we succeed. I’m staying over tonight okay,” he says.

The way the sentence is phrased makes it clear that  _ only _ he is staying over. The others assume that Jeno is most likely going to try and talk to Jaemin to get a better idea of the picture tonight. They don’t complain though. Because Jaemin makes it his job to be the happy one of the group and the pick me up for everybody, he doesn’t like showing negativity around them for he feels he’s doing them a disservice if he did. But since Jeno knew him for so many years now, he can get Jaemin to open up a bit in private and later convince him to tell the others. 

If anyone is going to help clear this situation up even a tiny bit, then it’s going to be Jeno.

“You don’t have to stay, you know,” Jaemin says.

“I don’t have to but I will so deal with it. I’ll tell Doyoung hyung that I’m staying and that’s that,” Jeno responds.

Jaemin no longer tries to argue and seems to sink more into the older’s embrace.

“We’re going to get going then. We’ll be back here tomorrow and maybe we can go to the hospital before we start officially planning anything,” Mark says.

“Okay, sounds good. We’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Jeno says.

“Bye guys,” Jaemin says tiredly.

They bring it in for a group hug, hugging each other for reassurance and support. No matter what they are still a team and still best friends. This is just another job that they are going to succeed in. It’s not the first time they’ve done a job with emotions attached and they’re sure it won’t be the last so they’re ready for this.

When they break apart and those who are leaving take their leave, Jeno takes an emotionally exhausted Jaemin upstairs and to his bedroom where they’ll be spending the rest of the day and night at. 

Having known each other for years, the silence that’s in the room doesn’t bother them because it speaks more than anyone knows. They go hours doing what they do best and that’s flowing around each other naturally, time always getting lost and flying by when they lock themselves away from the world.

And if Jeno held a scared and crying Jaemin who woke up from a nightmare in the middle of the night then no one, not even time, has to know.

“It’s alright Jaem, I’m here,” Jeno says in a hushed tone.

Jaemin shakes in Jeno’s arms, his crying not allowing him to breathe properly. He wheezes and gasps for air in between sobs.

“It hurts Nono, it hurts,” he cries, clutching the elder tightly.

Jeno rubs his back soothingly like he’s done so many times before. 

“You’re healed remember. You’re fine and you’re going to be fine, I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise you that you won’t end up in that hospital bed again. I promise. I’ll protect you,” he says.

Jaemin continues to cry, burying his head deeper into Jeno’s embrace if that is even possible. And as he cries into Jeno’s arms, Jeno knows two things.

One: they won’t be going back to sleep tonight with Jaemin being too afraid to sleep.

Two: he has to make sure this job goes well or Jaemin will never sleep nightmare free again.

_ “I’m here, Nana, I’m here.” _


	7. Choi Minsun, say hello to the devil for me

“You guys look like you haven’t slept at all.”

The five walk into the house the next morning and are met by a low energy Jeno who tiredly greeted them and a puffy-eyed Jaemin sitting down on the couch.

“Are you both alright? Why does it look like you’ve been crying, Nana?” Renjun asks.

Jeno gives him a tired smile as he takes a seat next to Jaemin.

“Yeah, we’re good. We spent all night talking. He was overthinking at one point in the night, that’s all. Don’t worry about us, we just need some coffee,” Jeno responds.

Jaemin gives a thumbs up, in addition, to show that he agrees with Jeno’s response.

The others don’t know how much they believe that coffee is all that they need—by Jeno’s look, it seems like more of a job than caffeine alone—but they’ll take it for now. As with everything else going on right now, they’re going to go with the flow. They’re bound to get out of their confusion sooner or later.

“We can grab some coffee on the way over to the hospital if you would like,” Mark suggests.

Jeno yawns at the same time Jaemin shivers and reaches out for the older. As if he already knew that was going to happen, Jeno takes Jaemin’s hand in his own without looking. No one misses the way he rubs his thumb over the back of Jaemin’s hand.

“About that, we can’t go to the hospital today. Jungwoo hyung texted earlier and said that since Jaemin’s parents are now involved in the matter, it’s best for us to stay away until everything calms down a bit. We know how our parents can be. Jaemin is really worried about Yuta hyung and Johnny hyung but he understands though,” Jeno says, gesturing to the hand he is holding.

“Wait, we can’t go to see them? Then how are we going to know if everything goes okay?” Donghyuck asks, joining in on Jaemin’s worry.

Jaemin pulls his hand out of Jeno’s and opens up his arms toward Donghyuck, the latter not hesitating to embrace the affection.

“Hyung says he will keep us updated. We have to be patient,” Jaemin says, hugging Donghyuck to comfort the both of them.

Jaemin’s tiredness can be heard in his voice, unlike Jeno. Whereas with Jeno you can clearly see his tiredness but not so much hear it, Jaemin looks okay minus his puffy eyes but his voice holds his fatigue. The two really must have been up  _ ALL _ night.

“Have you two eaten breakfast already?” Mark asks.

“No, we were going to but then we ended up on the couch and took a semi-nap there and didn’t get back up until you guys came,” Jeno says.

“I’m ordering food now,” Jisung says, pulling out his phone.

No one argues or makes a request of what they want so the youngest continues on with what he’s doing, choosing for them.

“Until the food comes, you two should get some more rest. At least close your eyes for a bit,” Chenle says.

Jeno looks to Jaemin, who was already looking at him, and they have a silent conversation between their eyes. Whatever it’s about, it didn’t take long for them to come to an agreement of sorts.

“Sounds good to us. It’s Hyuck’s turn to get cuddled to suffocation though,” Jeno responds.

“You’re just mad that Hyuckie is more comfortable than you,” Jaemin responds, hugging Donghyuck a bit tighter to prove his point.

“I never thought I’d see the day where Hyuck is actually wanted over someone,” Renjun says.

Donghyuck gives him a glare in return, ignoring the chuckles of the others. 

“Don’t listen to him, I always want you and Mark as the oldest does too or else he’d be a bad elder,” Jaemin says.

“You make me sound like I’m five-plus years older than you. Go be like Jeno and sleep already,” Mark says, pointing over to Jeno who indeed has his eyes closed and seems very peaceful.

“I’m still awake. Close your eyes Jaem,” Jeno says, not opening his eyes.

Jaemin doesn’t have to be told again because he settles down with Donghyuck still in his arms, eyes closing before his mind can even tell them to.

As the three—Donghyuck joining in on the resting period since who turns down a time to nap—take a short rest, the others decide to go do their own things quietly until the food comes. It’s only 9 something so they’re in no rush to do anything anyway.

The food comes about thirty minutes later but since Jeno and Jaemin seemed so peaceful, no one wakes them up.

It’s not until 10:15 does Jaemin suddenly pops up out of his sleep breathing heavy and looking all over the place, startling Donghyuck awake. Instantly, Jeno is up and staring directly at Jaemin.

“Are you okay, Jaemin?” Donghyuck asks, not missing the tightening grip the younger has on him.

Jaemin is still looking around when he catches sight of Jeno telling him to breathe slowly. He takes a deep breath to calm himself down.

“Yeah yeah, I’m good. I think I forgot to breathe while sleeping,” he replies, giving an out of breath smile.

“Is that possible?” Chenle asks.

Jeno seems to relax a bit as he notices Jaemin progressively calming down. He turns to Chenle with a small smile.

“With Jaemin, a lot of things are possible,” he says, Donghyuck nodding in agreement from behind.

Jaemin finally lets go of Donghyuck and they both stand to stretch. Jeno takes his time getting up, secretly checking to make sure Jaemin isn’t on the verge of panic.

“The food came a bit ago, are you guys ready to eat?” Mark says.

“Yeah we are, why didn’t you guys wake us up earlier?” Jaemin says.

“You guys seemed peaceful and you both really needed the rest so we let you all sleep. Don’t forget to breathe while eating now. We don’t want you choking now,” Renjun replies.

They all chuckle at the joke. Jaemin would be the type to suddenly start choking while eating for whatever reason.

Chenle and Jisung get the food from the kitchen and bring it to the living room so they can all eat there. They set up the food family-style so everyone can grab whatever they want though most of the food is directed towards Jeno and Jaemin.

Just as if it was a completely normal occurrence, they all have breakfast together flowing smoothly with each other—and in a way, it is normal for them. Like their own little family that they are, they go through breakfast without any issues. Everyone knows what each other will eat and won’t eat. They know who prefer juice with their breakfast, who prefers water, and who prefers coffee. They just know each other.

After breakfast, they decide to do nothing for a bit. It just feels like a lazy day for them and they don’t know if it’s because yesterday drained all of their energy or because the air in the house puts out that feeling. Whatever the reason—which does differ depending on who in the room you ask—they all agree to take some time to do nothing and relax.

It isn’t their first time just sitting around not doing anything with each other. While it doesn’t happen often, it does occur and they know at times they need to sit and do nothing. It doesn’t bother them and no one needs to hear anyone talk, though small conversation can and does happen. They’ve been around each other for so long that it’s completely comfortable for them to be around each other in silence.

It stays a comfortable silence for about forty minutes before the peace is broken by the sound of keys unlocking the front door.

Like military students, they all sit up ramrod straight at the sound, Jaemin being the tensest. 

The door opens and like every other time, her heels are heard before she is even seen.

“Mother,” Jaemin greets in an unusually formal way. 

Are they usually unattached to their parents in their speech? Yes. Are they ever  _ that _ formal sounding as if they weren’t even related? No, and they don’t think they’ll ever be despite their distancing relationship.

“Ah Jaemin, you’re out of your room. I see your friends are over again. Do you have any plans today with them?” Mrs. Na says.

Once again, everyone but Jaemin bows to her in respect and greeting at being acknowledged. 

They can’t put their finger on it but this does not feel like a regular interaction in the slightest, not even in the Na household.

“We planned to stay in today. Is there something that you needed?” Jaemin responds.

If one looks closely enough, they would see that Jaemin is not making direct eye contact with his mother but instead looking a few centimeters over to the side. 

Only two people are looking that closely though but one person is none other than his own mother. The other is Lee Jeno who seems to fairly familiar with this type of conversation that is happening in front of them all.

“No no, there isn’t. I am just here to inform you of some things. I have canceled all of your activities and appointments until Yuta has healed. Your father and I understand that you will be very concerned and distracted until he is fully recovered so it was decided that on certain days you will come to the hospital to assist in his recovery. It’s practice of sorts,” Mrs. Na says.

This gets Jaemin, and everyone else for that matter, to look directly at his mother.

“You want me to assist? But I don’t know enough to help in his case. Why can’t you or father do it without me? Yuta-ssi’s recovery is not something I should be using as a practice scene,” Jaemin says.

“You are getting older, Jaemin. You must get acquainted with the hospital and its procedures as soon as possible. With your connection with Yuta, we are sure you’d take it more seriously since you do want the best for him. We cannot have you sitting to the side anymore,” his mother responds.

In a brief moment, a flare of emotion sparks in Jaemin’s eyes. It’s a strong mixture of emotions, stronger than what you would usually find in his eyes. But it’s almost as if it never happened because the same amount of time it took to appear is the same amount of time it took for it to disappear. It was almost like a balloon that was inflated too fast only to pop and deflate flatter than it originally started off as.

Jaemin looks to his mother with dead eyes though his posture stays the same.

“Whose idea was it?” He asks.

A silence takes place as his mother does not respond immediately. Instead, the two look at each other with guarded eyes. Once again, it looks as if Mrs. Na is searching for something in her son.

Finally, she moves, stepping forward and placing her hand on Jaemin’s cheek. She doesn’t break eye contact with him as she begins to caress his face.

“It’s for the best Jamie. You know mother would never steer you wrong. Good things happen when you listen to mommy. Be a good boy and go along with this easily,” she says.

The deadness in Jaemin’s expression never changes; if anything it increased. It’s as if all of the fight left him and not a single speck of it is left within him.

If they all didn’t know better, then all of them watching would have thought his mother actually sounded like a real mother who only wants the best for her child. She almost sounds compassionate. 

But they do know better.

“Yes mother, I’ll go along,” Jaemin replies in a monotone.

His mother smiles at the response, not caring how it came out.

“That’s my lovely little boy. Your driver will be here tomorrow morning at six. Dress appropriately and be ready to work. Your father will be with you tomorrow,” she says.

She gives him a kiss on the forehead before backing away from him. She turns to Jeno.

“Jeno, I would like for you to stay here with Jaemin until Yuta has recovered. I know how forgetful he can be when stressed and I’d like to have someone watch over him during this time. You two are very close so I am sure that you will make sure he is fine and doing what he is supposed to. I’ll inform your parents so I’d appreciate it if you could do this favor for me and my husband,” she says.

The request throws them off. They weren’t expecting her to ask a favor, let alone ask for that. She actually sounds concerned for Jaemin but it still sounds off and a bit far away.

“I’ll be happy to. I’ll take care of him,” Jeno replies politely.

Mrs. Na smiles again and waves goodbye to them.

“Thank you, Jeno. Have a good day, boys. Goodbye Jamie, be a good boy for mother,” she says.

Jaemin mechanically nods but that’s all she needs. She takes the response and leaves the house, door closing and locking behind her with a resonating sound.

It’s a few seconds before anyone says something, just in case she decides to come back for some reason.

“That’s was…methodical,” Jisung says once he’s sure it’s only them again.

“She’s a doctor; everything is methodical in the hospital,” Jaemin says plainly.

For some reason, he’s still staring at the door with dead eyes that don’t seem present in this world. 

“Jaem?” Jeno calls out.

It does the trick in snapping Jaemin out of his trance. He turns to them with a bit more of a human look in his expression than before.

“She did it again,” he says.

They all know what he means when he says that. His mother has a way of just forcing things on him but none of them can describe how. It’s not guilt-tripping and it’s not threatening him. It’s not even with actual force. They all know he doesn’t go along with it willingly but yet somehow that’s how it always seems. There’s no other choice but for him to accept it.

They each give him their own look of understanding and comfort. They all understand the struggle of when their parents do that to them. It’s frustrating.

“Why don’t we start planning out the job now? Since you’re going to be busy now, let’s take all the time we have,” Jeno says to take the focus off of what just happened.

“Yeah, that’s a good idea. Come on, let’s start planning, Nana,” Donghyuck says.

Chenle grabs Jaemin by the hand, giving an extra push—or pull in this case—to get him moving again. They all end up gathered back on the couch, sitting close to each other. Renjun takes out his phone to take notes, as usual, his regular laptop not with him currently.

“So what do we know about the target already?” Mark asks.

“Choi Minsun, twenty-eight and apparently took his father’s place in whatever they do. He’s very important for all of our parents’ businesses. His visits are regular and are under the pretense of regular business,” Renjun starts.

“He’s doing an abnormally long photoshoot with my parents’ magazine this visit—I don’t understand how—and something we don’t know with Jaemin’s. The photoshoot is postponed because he told my parents that he refuses to take photos with his face damaged. He feels entitled to everything so everything will most likely be served to him on a silver platter since our parents our suck-ups,” Donghyuck continues. 

“He’s conceited and believes he can do no wrong. He appears to take nothing seriously unless it involves him directly but even then it’s in an immature way. The best way to get his favor is most likely to feed his ego,” Jeno adds.

“He’s an alcoholic, a drug addict, and a smoker. He’s had an accidental overdose but the hospital was able to get to him first and save him. The important parts of his history are fabricated in the records, easy to tell if you know what to look for,” Jaemin gives.

“He’s staying in one of my parents’ hotels and will most likely have one of the best rooms. That means all our parents are probably involved in some way to get his attention,” Chenle states.

“He also apparently has met Jaemin before which means Nana is probably the only one who could get close enough to him without much suspicion,” Jisung says.

They all catch Jaemin’s frown at the comment.

“I don’t even want to think about speaking to him but if it means him dying then I’ll suck it up,” Jaemin says.

Being near that man is one of the last things he wants to do. But one of the first things he wants is for Choi to be gone so if push comes to shove, he’ll ignore those feelings for a bit.

“We won’t knock it off the table just yet but no confirmation either. Any initial ideas on how to carry this out?” Mark says.

They all turn to Jaemin first since he suggested the job and it means the most to him.

“Well, the simplest way is drugging/poisoning. With as many substances that enter his body on a regular basis, it’s the best way to avoid suspicion. I can either create it as a pill to go with his regular drugs or as a liquid to go in his alcohol. Either one has to go with whatever he normally takes so no signs point to outside sources,” Jaemin says.

They have to be very careful so as not to leave even the slightest hint that this was a murder and not some unfortunate death. With their parents so focused on this one man, they can’t afford to leave anything behind.

“Maybe not pills because how can we be sure that he’ll take that specific pill. Liquid makes it easier to confirm that he’ll take it,” Renjun says.

“Valid point. How do we get it in his drink then?” Jisung says.

“He’s staying in one of our hotels, I can get us access to his room,” Chenle suggests.

Since his parents are the owners of a large popular chain of hotels, Chenle practically has access to every room to any hotel that anyone would think of going to. It’ll only take a few moments for him to figure out which hotel Choi is staying in and what room. After that, anything that may need to be done there is all easy access.

“But what about the cameras? Even if Injunnie got in the system, it would be way too suspicious if missing parts were in the video. That or they would find out that the feed was tampered with. If they catch us in his room without him being there then we’re done for,” Donghyuck says.

There’s no doubt that once the man dies, the first thing that is going to be checked thoroughly is the video feed. With their parents on the case, it doesn’t matter how good Renjun is, they’ll find out that the video was messed with.

“What if we were invited in? Or at least one of us. There aren’t cameras everywhere in the room and on cameras, we would be shown being invited in,” Mark suggests.

“Why would he invite us in though? We agreed that Jaemin is the only one he seems to know meaning he wouldn’t invite any of us in other than Nana. And even if he did, it would look weird for him to invite us if he doesn’t know us,” Renjun says.

“Jaemin is not going in there by himself. Either we find a way to go in with him or we find a different way to do it all but he’s not going in alone. The way he talked to Jaem was disturbing, we’re not going to give him another chance,” Jeno cuts in with finality in his voice.

Jaemin lets out a shaky breath he didn’t even know he was holding in. The thought of being in a hotel room alone with Choi makes his skin crawl. While he would do it if he had to, it would disturb him greatly. Thank god for Jeno speaking up against the idea.

He looks to the older and gives a weak smile. Jeno, in return, gives him an understanding nod. No matter how badly they want/need this job done, they’re still going to take into consideration certain comfort levels.

No one objects or questions the objection. Again, they understand what it’s like to do a job with emotions attached. They aren’t going to force anything on anyone, Jaemin in particular for this job, that makes them really uncomfortable.

“Alright then, let’s scratch the hotel room idea since there seems to be a lot involved with it. How else can we get the drug in his drink?” Mark says.

“We can always watch him a bit to see when he drinks and decide from there. We’ll get more information on his routines and stuff of that nature and then we’ll know the best opportunity to do it,” Jisung suggests.

At least with more information they can be more sure about things as well. Knowing his habits will help them knock down potential risks and unnecessary hassles.

“That’s a good idea. I can stop in a few times during the shoot to observe him and Lele can ask about him in the hotel,” Donghyuck says.

“Yeah, I can ask Lucas, he’ll most likely know a lot since I’m sure my parents probably assigned him as the one to make sure Choi is comfortable and all his needs are met. They usually assign him to these kinds of things,” Chenle says.

Wong Yukhei, who is better known as Lucas, is one of the Zhong family’s youngest worker, being only a few months older than Mark. He’s practically a giant puppy but he’s a good worker. No one can keep up with him since his endless energy plays into his work productivity. Because of that, the Zhong’s usually assign him bigger tasks, even if it means taking him away from his stationed hotel location, since he will get it done. 

Since Lucas is basically their age, he’s always available to tell them stuff involving the hotels. Their little gossip sessions are enjoyable and with Lucas’ energy, it’s never dull. If Chenle asks for some information about someone as toxic as Choi Minsun, they know they’ll be receiving a good set of information.

“Okay, that’s a good idea and we should definitely do it but don’t you guys think that it’ll look too suspicious if we get all of this information and then the day we meet him is the day he so happens to die? It’ll look weird and even if they don’t pin the death on us, we’ll be involved in some way,” Jeno says.

It’s a valid point. If he dies on the same day he meets one or more of them then that places them in a window of time that could make them guilty. And if anyone finds out that they were asking about him, that’ll look even worse.

“Is there really a way to avoid that though? We have to be there to put the drug in his drink. We did agree that that is the best way for him to die,” Donghyuck says.

They try to think of a way to avoid this problem without having to change the idea too much. This would be much easier if their parents weren’t so observant of Choi. Their biggest pain for this job will be their parents in the aftermath of it all.

Suddenly, Jaemin pops up straight and looks to them with wide eyes.

“What if the drug is given to him days before he dies?” Jaemin suggests.

“How would that work? Wouldn’t the drug kill him that day?” Jisung asks.

They can see the idea spreading out in his mind, a certain clarity showing on his face.

“I can make a drug that’ll take days, maybe two or three, to kill him. It’ll be in his system slowly killing him but he won’t actually die until days after he takes it. That way we don’t have to be on the scene the day he actually dies and we can have a strong alibi on that day. And if he keeps drinking and taking drugs after we drug him then that looks even more like substance abuse as the cause of death,” Jaemin explains.

A slow death saves them the trouble of any accusations being made about them. They won’t have to be anywhere near Choi if he was already poisoned days in advance. It allows him to go about life normally until he suddenly dies which makes the entire thing seems even more like an unfortunate death.

“That’s genius. That makes it fewer days for us to have to be around him. After he’s poisoned, all we have to do is watch from afar. But can you actually make it though? I don’t doubt your skills but that sounds like something more complex than what you normally make,” Mark says.

Jaemin smiles his bright smile and it’s like of relief for all of them to see. It feels like they haven’t seen him smile in so long and it’s really only been a day. They’ve missed his smile a lot.

“Trust me, I can do it. And with Jeno staying with me, I’ll have someone to keep me focused on it. I’ll have it done by the time you gather your needed information,” Jaemin replies happily.

“I know I thought it before but I’m going to say it now. Your skills are kinda scary and worrying so never forget that I’ve always cared about you the most and you’re my favorite,” Renjun says, giving Jaemin a finger heart and a smile.

Everyone laughs at the comment, Jaemin laughing the hardest.

“I care too; you’ve always been my favorite hyung,” Chenle pipes up with a bright smile.

“You both say that now but you weren’t saying that when you sent Kun hyung and Sicheng hyung after him,” Jisung says with a smirk.

“That is true,” Jaemin says, trying to hide his smile to continue to mess with the two.

Renjun and Chenle look at Jisung with betrayed looks on their faces. Mark tries to hide his laughter at the expression while Donghyuck and Jeno are almost turning red from their non-stop laughing on the side.

“I practically raised you, you little gremlin,” Renjun says in an uncharacteristically dramatic way.

“Sungie, I thought we were best friends,” Chenle whines.

Jisung shrugs in response, copying Chenle’s innocent smile. Mark and Jaemin can no longer hold back their laughter and fall out laughing, joining Jeno and Donghyuck in their contagious laughter.

The way their laughter fills the room erases the cold, dull tiredness that was lingering in the air—especially after Jaemin’s mother came in—feels like a welcome miracle. It was as if the air has been still in this house since yesterday but now finally, finally, it can move again and they can be them. 

It’s the first step to succeed in this job.

* * *

 

Jeno looks down to the finally sleeping figure of Jaemin.

He wasn’t wrong when he said Jaemin will not have a nightmare-free night until this job is finished. It’s been two weeks since the car crash and since Jaemin suggested/begged for this job and he has had a nightmare every night this far.

Some nights he’ll wake up crying in imaginary pain and other nights he’ll wake up screaming at the top of his lungs. No matter how long he stays up for or what he does to keep his mind off of it, any sleep past forty-five minutes is at risk of a nightmare. Sometimes it only takes forty-five minutes and other times it can take up to four hours but either way, he’ll wake up from a nightmare.

Jeno sighs as he runs his hand through Jaemin’s hair, staring at the younger’s face. 

They both have matching black circles under their eyes from their many nights being up but Jaemin’s are much worse than Jeno’s. Jaemin’s dark circles are becoming so bad, his concealer is starting to have trouble hiding them. It’s the only tell-tale sign of their sleepless nights since they are able to act away any fatigue around others convincingly. But the dark circles shout volumes so they have to cover them up so as to not worry anyone. They just have to wait until this job is done and then they will no longer even have these circles.

“I hope you can sleep a bit longer this time Jaem. I know your mother wanted me to watch over you but I doubt she knew it would be like this. You’re going to be okay though; we’ll make sure we succeed at this job.  _ I’ll _ make sure we succeed. Just hold on a bit longer, okay? Just hold on and then you’ll feel much better at the end of it all,” Jeno says softly to the sleeping figure.

Once again, a bit of guilt gnaws at him the longer he stares at Jaemin. He feels guilty that he can sleep whenever he chooses when Jaemin is cursed to have a nightmare no matter what time he tries to sleep. He feels guilty that he can stay in or go out to get his mind off of everything when Jaemin has to go back to that hospital, a place he hates and fears, so often to do work he doesn’t even want to do. He feels guilty that he can go about his day without any worries if he tried to when Jaemin is the one who has to see those terrors every day and pretend as if he doesn’t. He feels guilty and it’s killing him slowly.

The sound of the doorbell ringing, a curtsy ring from their friends, saves Jeno from going under in his guilt again.

Dressed and concealer already applied, Jeno stands up from his spot on the bed next to Jaemin.

“I’ll be back soon, I hope you can get a bit more sleep in,” Jeno says.

He gives one last look at Jaemin before leaving the room and going downstairs to open the door to let the others in. Mark usually doesn’t use his key unless it’s an emergency or they are really really in a rush so he knows they are waiting for them to be let in.

When he reaches the living room, he does one last shake to get rid of any remaining worry and tiredness on his face before opening the door.

“Took you long enough to open the door,” Donghyuck says the second the door opens, walking past Jeno with a teasing smile.

“It’s barely reaching noon Hyuckie, do you really want to start now? I thought Mark taught you better manners than that,” Jeno replies with an eyebrow raised and an amused smirk.

Renjun snorts at the comment.

“Not even Mark can teach him manners, no matter how good he acts sometimes,” he says.

Donghyuck makes a face in response but leaves it alone anyway.

“Where’s Nana? Isn’t he coming down?” Jisung asks. 

“Jaem is asleep. He was up late working on the drug again and then we woke up early for some reason. So after breakfast and a bit more work, he fell asleep and I didn’t want to wake him up. If he wakes up while you guys are still out, I’ll just inform him of everything,” Jeno replies.

Part of him feels bad lying to them about this. He knows that they would be concerned about Jaemin not sleeping and would try to help him out in any way they can but none of them can do anything for him except for completing this job. Besides, Jaemin doesn’t want them to know just yet so as his best friend, Jeno will respect his wishes. He’ll keep lying to them for as long as he has to until Jaemin is ready to tell them everything.

“Don’t let him overwork himself now. He has to get proper rest,” Mark says.

_ ‘He won’t get a proper rest for a few more days sadly,’ _ Jeno thinks to himself.

“Yeah, I’ll make sure he gets some sleep, especially after he finishes the drug,” Jeno replies.

“Good. We’ll keep it short here to avoid making too much noise. We know what we’re doing today?” Mark says.

They all nod and Jeno internally sighs in relief. He’s worried that if they stay here too long, Jaemin may wake up while they’re still here. The chance of Jaemin waking up quietly is very slim and he doesn’t know if they can lie themselves out of that if it happened.

“We’re gathering information now that the shoot has finally started. Lele is going to see Lucas, Injun and Sungie are hacking into cameras in the places he’s been, and we’re going to the set of the shoot,” Donghyuck says.

It took two weeks but the photoshoot finally started. Choi threw a fit every time someone tried to start it earlier, screaming about his face and how it has to be in perfect condition.

They couldn’t do anything while the shoot was still postponed because then they wouldn’t have any excuses to use. So they had to wait with everyone else until Choi decided he was ready to work. Fortunately for them, Choi also refused to work early in the morning so they get to have some time to themselves before having to deal with him.

“I’m staying here with Jaem and when he wakes up we’ll most likely finish up the drug,” Jeno adds.

The one thing he wasn’t lying about was that Jaemin stayed up late working on the drug. It’s almost complete because he has been working diligently on it. Jeno doesn’t understand most of what Jaemin is doing but it is nice to watch the younger in his field. Sometimes he forgets that Jaemin knows a lot about the medical field and drugs so he’s always pleasantly surprised when he’s reminded of that fact. The drug really will be done soon.

“We all keep in touch throughout the day and we’ll meet back here when we’re done to discuss everything,” Mark says.

“Good luck guys, the sooner we get good information the sooner we can end this job. See you when you get back,” Jeno says.

They all nod in agreement. They want to get this job soon. Choi Minsun is a headache they no longer want to deal with and they haven’t even had to deal with him directly more than one time.

“I bet we’ll get the best information,” Donghyuck says, putting his arm around Mark.

Mark gives Donghyuck that ‘how did I get dragged into this’ look but the younger is way too used to that look.

“No way, I’m getting the most and best information. Your information is going to be nothing compared to mine,” Chenle says.

“You see, you’re both wrong.  _ WE’RE _ going to get this best information so you all can stop now,” Jisung joins in confidently.

Mark looks to Jeno and Jeno shrugs with a smile. He mouths to just go along with it, just like they usually do.

“I guess Jaemin and I will be the judges of that. Now, get out there and stop wasting time,” Jeno says.

“Sir yes sir. Come on Markie, we have the greatest information to go get,” Donghyuck says.

Mark rolls his eyes but goes along with the younger nevertheless, hiding his smile a bit so as not to fuel Donghyuck’s childishness right now.

They both leave, Mark saying goodbye for the both of them. 

When the two are gone, Renjun looks down at his phone, what’s most likely going to act as his computer for today, and starts looking through it.

“We’ll get going now too. We don’t want to run into him on our way over,” Renjun says.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if Renjun has some sort of tracker on their target already and that’s what he is using his phone for. They won’t ask how or when he did that if he did but for the record they are not in any way surprised if that is the case.

“Good luck guys, don’t get caught,” Jeno replies.

Going to the places Choi has been is a bit risky since if anyone catches them, it may look a bit weird. But there’s little worry there since Jisung is the best at stealth in their group and Renjun is no stranger to staying out of sight, especially if it involves technology so the two are probably the best for this. Donghyuck and Chenle are too loud and noticeable, Mark and Jeno are too clumsy, and Jaemin is out for obvious/hidden reasons. The best pair is on this part of this mission so they aren’t too worried.

“We’ll be careful, don’t worry. See you later,” Jisung says.

The pair leaves the house. 

Jeno turns to Chenle, the only remaining one who has to leave.

“Are you sure you’re good on your own? I can go with you and I’m sure I can convince Jaemin to come along to get away from the sight of his own room,” Jeno says.

Chenle waves in response with a shake of his head.

“I’ll be fine. Nana needs the rest and he’ll need you to keep him from working himself into the ground. I have an idea already and it’ll look less suspicious if only I show up anyway. I’ll keep in touch,” Chenle replies.

Three people randomly showing up at the hotel and asking questions about one person is very questionable and they can’t seem to stress enough that they cannot afford to raise any questions in anyone’s head. Not even the secretaries. This isn’t just any job they’re doing; this is a murder. Only the seven of them should be involved in this and no one can be tipped off to what they are planning.

“Okay, I hope it goes well for you,” Jeno says.

“Thanks, I’ll be back later with actually useful information unlike Hyuck,” Chenle replies with a smile.

Jeno ruffles his hair affectionately with a chuckle. Leave it to Hyuck and Lele to turn it into a competition. 

“I’ll be waiting then. Now get going,” Jeno says.

Chenle salutes jokingly and leaves the house, leaving Jeno to be the only left in the living room.

For a moment, the house is completely silent. It would have startled Jeno if he didn’t know that the silence was a good thing. 

Since he’s been staying with Jaemin, almost every moment has been filled with some type of sound. When they’re (Jaemin really) working on the drug, there is some type of chatter going on which ironically keeps Jaemin focused on what he’s doing this time. At night when they’re supposed to be sleeping, the room is filled with crying or screams followed by hushed whispers or soft singing. When they have nothing to do but Jaemin wants to keep his mind off of things, sometimes they’ll put on music and dance together or sing or rap. Other times they’ll turn on the TV or a video game and let the noise distract them. Rarely has there been a time of silence.

The only silent moments are the times where Jaemin is sleeping before the nightmares take their hold on him and when either of them is too exhausted to talk and just want to spend the moment doing nothing. Needless to say, silent moments don’t last long.

Jeno checks his phone. It’s been about fifty minutes since Jaemin fell asleep. He’s officially in the danger zone.

“I better get something for him for whenever he wakes up,” Jeno says to himself.

He goes to the kitchen and grabs a bottle of water. After thinking it over a bit and checking the time once more, he also grabs a pack of cookies in hopes that the sugar will be a valid substitute to the caffeine Jaemin has been downing religiously lately. The energy is needed but there is definitely a limit they should be conscious of.

He spends a few more minutes staring into the refrigerator for whatever reason, mind going blank as he looks at the white light. There’s something about white light that has some kind of effect on him. Maybe  _ he _ has been spending too much time in the hospital as well. Jaemin isn’t the only person who needs this job over with soon.

“ _ AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! _ ”

Jeno almost drops the stuff in his hands at the sound but in the last second his hands grip tighter around the items. Like all the other times, his heart speeds up to an unhealthy rate and he doesn’t hesitate to move.

He closes the refrigerator and runs to and up the stairs by two. He runs into Jaemin’s room, dropping the water and cookies on the nearest surface that isn’t the floor. 

Jaemin is throwing himself around, eyes shut tightly in what is no doubt fear and pain. He’s holding his back as he rolls all over his bed.

Jeno hurries to the bed and pulls Jaemin into his arms.

“It’s okay Jaem, I’m right here. Open your eyes Jaemin, you’re okay, you’re okay,” he says.

In less than another second, Jaemin throws his arms around Jeno tightly and buries his head into the elder's shoulder. His breathing is ragged and his lungs feel as bad as his back does in this moment.

“You have to breathe Jaem, deep breaths,” Jeno reminds him.

Jeno makes it his job to do deep breaths for Jaemin to follow as he usually does.

“You’re doing so good. You slept for an hour this time and slept through Hyuck’s and Lele’s loud voices, you’re getting better. Soon, you’ll be able to sleep how you used to without any problems. Then I won’t have to worry about your unhealthy coffee addiction as much anymore,” Jeno says with a lighthearted tone to lighten the mood.

And Jaemin wouldn’t be Jaemin if he didn’t chuckle along even when he feels terrible. Either way, it helps calm him down a bit.

“It was just a nightmare, right? The pain isn’t real, I've healed already,” Jaemin says through his breaths.

It has almost become a mantra for him. They’re the words reminding him of reality.

“That’s right, you’re alright and healed. It’s all okay,” Jeno reassures.

It takes a few more minutes for Jaemin to get himself a bit more under control, one of his shortest record times for calming down.

“Feel good enough to bite on a cookie?” Jeno asks.

Jaemin nods, letting go of Jeno in response.

Jeno gets up and grabs the stuff he placed down when he first entered the room. He hands Jaemin the cookies and water.

“I’m going to grab my phone now so we can stay updated on what’s going on,” Jeno says.

“Grab my stuff for me while you’re at it, please. I want to finish the drug,” Jaemin says.

Jeno nods and moves to grab the stuff.

_ ‘I really hope they get good information for us so we can end this already.’ _

~~~

 

Chenle waves goodbye to the driver that he just heavily tipped to speed just for the thrill of it. By the time they reached the hotel, he thinks the driver was the one to have a heart attack. But it’s all good for the fun of it. He really should blame Jeno for ever giving the idea of bribing a driver to speed. That’s all they do now even when they don’t have to.

He pulls down his face mask and checks the time. Without any hesitation, he strolls into the lobby walks into the hotel with a bounce in his step. Unlike Donghyuck and Jaemin, it isn’t a rare instance for Zhong Chenle to walk into one of his parents’ establishments. It’s actually quite common and he’s sure some of the staff in each and every hotel hates to see him.

He refrains from laughing at the looks he is being given. A bellhop just hit his head a few times on the luggage cart and a housekeeper just scurried out of the lobby but he’ll pretend he didn’t see it so he’s not tempted to really draw a reaction out of them. 

He walks straight up to the front desk where the person he was looking for is right where he expected him to be.

“LUCAS HYUNG!!” Chenle cheers as he peers over the desk.

Lucas looks up to him with his usual energetic smile.

“Lele! What are you doing here?” He says.

Chenle puts his elbows on the desk casually.

He never cared about he acts in the hotel. In public, he’s very well behaved or else there would be a scandal on him or his family in a heartbeat and he knows better than that. But in one of their hotels, he’ll act whatever way he wants to. He does pretty much own it.

“You and I are going to lunch together. Come on, let’s go,” Chenle replies.

“Woah, that’s sudden. I’m still working though,” Lucas says but still getting up nonetheless.

Chenle gives him a pleading look as he grabs his hand.

“Please hyung? All my friends are like super busy but now I finally get time to hang out with you and I want to catch up after everything that has been going on. I’ll get someone to fill in for you while you’re gone,” Chenle says.

If one thing almost everyone knows it’s that Lucas has a HARD time saying no to people, especially to Chenle and company. He only says no when he really has to but every other time he struggles greatly and then usually gives in anyway.

“Oh fine, let’s go. But make sure you cover my ass so I don’t get in trouble with your parents,” Lucas says.

Chenle cheers and begins pulling on Lucas’ hand.

“Yay! We’re going to have so much fun. Come on, I’m paying so you don’t have to worry about a thing. Nana took Sungie and I to this awesome place and you’re going to love the food there,” he says.

Lucas grabs his things, never really leaving the important stuff in his locker, and walks from behind the desk. No one even has to say anything because a staff lady comes from behind and silently takes Lucas’ place.

Once a Zhong walks into one of their hotels, word spreads quicker than fire, everyone fearing for their job. Once Zhong Chenle walks into a hotel, straws are drawn to see who will take Lucas’s place because everyone knows that’s usually all he’s ever there for.

“Hey free food is free food, I’d never complain. Lead the way,” Lucas says.

Chenle cheerfully walks out of the hotel with him, silently laughing at the relieved look on some of the staff’s faces. He’ll cause trouble in this hotel soon enough so he’ll give them a break today.

They are going to have a dead body in this hotel in a matter of days after all.

He hails a cab for the two of them and, this time, allows the driver to go the speed limit, only for Lucas’ sake.

The ride doesn’t take long which is good. Chenle wants more time to talk and gather information. He’s also really excited to catch up with Lucas. It feels like it’s been so long since he was able to spend some time just them together. He’s happy to go to lunch with the older.

“This place better not be super expensive, Chenle. You know working people catch heart attacks at high prices, even when they aren’t paying,” Lucas says as he looks at the place they are about to enter.

“Oh don’t worry, we only go to expensive places when we want to piss our parents off with our spending or when we’re dragged there by our parents. If you were going to pay, you could afford it,” Chenle replies.

Though they all have more money than the average wealthy teen and a lot more than the average working adult, they don’t make it a habit to just throw money around. You would think they’re regular teens with they spend most of the time—minus Chenle, he always spent like a rich kid. Of course, they do have the one or two interests they are willing to spend a lot of money on but other than those things they’re actually pretty responsible with their money.

They do, however, go on shopping sprees when they want to run their parents’ card to the max that they’ll never reach just to stick it to them but that’s a different story for a different time.

“Alright, I’m trusting you on this one,” Lucas says.

They enter the restaurant and are seated at a table immediately. They take a moment to look over the menu—Chenle told Lucas to order whatever he wants and how ever much he wants and Lucas practically had stars for eyes—and order.

“Thanks again for coming out with me on short notice,” Chenle says.

“It’s no problem, Lele. It’s been some time since we got to go to lunch together. I hope this place is as good as you say because I’m starving,” Lucas replies, probably a bit too loudly.

Chenle chuckles at the exaggeration. Lucas is always hungry and somehow always full of energy. His friends always say/complain that he and Lucas speak at the same constant volume: LOUD. Chenle begs to differ though. They aren’t loud, they’re just passionate and excited. That’s another reason why Chenle likes to be around Lucas; they understand each others’ excitement.

“Trust me, it is. And feel free to order more if you want. Who knows when’s the next time I’ll be able to take out for lunch will be, especially with that guy that’s here now,” Chenle says.

Lucas seems to pop up at that. If he was a dog, his ears would have turned toward Chenle.

“You mean Mr. Choi? You know about him?” Lucas asks.

Chenle nods.

He’s glad that he’s on the right track with this question. Clearly, Lucas has run into Choi before.

“Yeah, he’s absolute bad news if you ask me. You know he caused a car accident that caused Yuta hyung and Johnny hyung to end up in the hospital. It took two days for Yuta hyung to gain consciousness again. When I heard he was staying at one of our hotels, I was worried about what he may do to you,” Chenle says, leaning in a bit to show that this is indeed a gossip session.

“Really?! Man, I didn’t know he was  _ THAT _ bad. He’s a real pain though, I can’t wait for him to leave,” Lucas responds.

And now Chenle knows that it wasn’t a one-time occasion that Lucas has dealt with Choi. He’s definitely going to get good information today.

“Oh gosh, what has he done to you? It’s like no matter where you go, there’s a story about him,” Chenle says.

Lucas is usually a cheerful guy and has a light expression on his face if not smiling. But on rare instances, he can have a straight face that says he’s tired of whatever mess just happened.

Right now, he has that expression on.

“He’s impossible to deal with! I don’t even work the night shift but yet he’ll call the front desk for me at 3 in the morning and then that clerk transfers the call over to me because he refuses to go through anyone but me even though it’s most likely room service or a housemaid that will bring him whatever stupid thing he wanted. And when it is brought to him, eight out of ten he’ll call back to complain. I have the night staff complaining to me as if I was staff manager. It’s never-ending,” Lucas says.

Chenle feels bad for the entire staff. No one wants to deal with people that late in the night, let alone a grown man who acts like a little brat. This man really causes trouble for everyone no matter where he goes.

Maybe they really are doing a good thing by getting rid of him.

“What could he possibly want at that time? Can’t it wait until the morning?” Chenle asks.

Midway through his question, the first plates of their orders come. The conversation doesn’t stop though, both of them just grabbing the food while continuing on.

“That man is a 24/7 alcoholic. It’s usually against the rules for room service, especially bar service, to be used after a certain time but since he’s special or something we have to let him do whatever. He’s seriously has called to have me leave my house, go to pick up a certain type of expensive liquor that he wanted, and then bring it to him. It was two-thirty in the morning and it wasn’t even his first bottle,” Lucas says.

“Is that all he calls for? Alcohol?” Chenle replies.

Jaemin wasn’t kidding when he said alcoholic. Choi drinks alcohol as if it was water. How is his liver still functioning and how do they never catch him drunk?

“I mean he has asked for food, extra robes, someone to complain to or about but the most noticeable thing is the alcohol. He handles his liquor well though. I don’t think he drinks it all in one go. I think he drinks it throughout the day and then asks for a refill so he’s never drunk beyond functioning,” Lucas says.

“Is he always drinking? When I met him, he didn’t seem like he had any alcohol in his system. He was just creepy and annoying.”

“He saves most of his drinking for when he’s in his room which is why the ENTIRE staff hates him. I know he has a flask on him but he said something about how he’s not allowed to drink during work. He tells me he’s not an alcoholic, he just ‘appreciates the taste of good alcohol’. He never drinks anything cheap and I think we’re going to run out of the good drinks by the end of his visit.”

It almost feels like an actual complaining session and not an information gathering as Lucas explains more and they continue to eat. There’s not even a thought process involved while they’re eating. Their hands are just moving as they’re totally engaged in their conversation.

Chenle is making mental notes though. Choi doesn’t drink during work or at least that’s what he says since he does carry a flask. He drinks mainly in his room and never drinks anything cheap which means whatever they put that drug in has to be good liquor and it’ll most likely be put in his flask.

“God, he’s such a nightmare. My parents are going to have a fun time replacing all of that alcohol. I’m surprised he doesn’t have alcohol poisoning by now. Do you know when he’s leaving? I think we’re all waiting for that day,” Chenle says.

“He’s worse when you actually have to deal with him and not hear about him. I think he’s leaving a day or two after the last day of his shoot. He said on the last day of the shoot, he’s ordering a bunch of stuff to celebrate his success and ‘beautiful face’. We’re preparing for it now and then when he does leave,  _ WE’RE  _ throwing a celebration,” Lucas replies.

The last day of the shoot, huh? Chenle makes a note to ask Donghyuck when that is so they’ll have a date to work off of. If he dies the day of the last day then whatever he does at that celebration of his will seem more like the cause of it all.

“I’ll get my parents to throw in a bonus for you. I hope that shoot ends soon for your sake,” Chenle says.

“Really?! Oh please, I’d love to have a bonus. I’m probably going to need it for therapy after dealing with him all of this time. I am grateful for every time he leaves the hotel but I feel so bad for the people who have to deal with him out there,” Lucas says.

The world won’t have to deal with him much longer though, that’s for sure. The more he hears about how Choi acts, the less bad Chenle feels about this idea of theirs. Sure, they still don’t understand everything and are a bit hesitant but they really are doing people a gray colored favor by doing this.

“He’s a problem no matter where he goes. I remember that every time Jaemin comes back from the hospital after visiting Yuta hyung. He just needs to go home already,” Chenle says.

The conversation changes topics to how Yuta is faring and how things are going with the others and they both continue on with their lunch. Chenle is actually happy that the topic naturally shifted because it would look weird if they only talked about Choi the entire time and then something terrible happens to him in a matter of days.

Their lunch goes on smoothly, the two talking about anything that comes to mind and having their complete share of food. Chenle, feeling nice today, even decides to order individual meals to go for each of his friends. Besides, knowing Jaemin, he probably didn’t eat yet and spent most of his time working. And if Jaemin didn’t eat yet then that means Jeno didn’t eat yet so bringing them back something will be good.

When they finish their lunch, Lucas goes back to the hotel and Chenle promises to do this again soon. Afterward, Chenle heads back to Jaemin’s house, satisfied with the information he received.

When he enters the house, he sees everyone is already back.

“I’m back! Nana, did you have a good sleep? Also, I bought food for everyone,” Chenle says, raising the bag of food up higher.

As usual everyone perks up at the mention of food.

“Thank god for Lele, we didn’t eat anything yet,” Jeno says, gesturing to him and Jaemin and proving Chenle’s guess right.

“The sleep was needed. I’m more happy about the food though. Did you go back to that place I took you and Sungie to?” Jaemin says.

Chenle sets the food down, opens the bag, and begin to give each person their own little take out box.

“Yup, I took Lucas hyung there for lunch so I thought it would be nice to bring you all back something. Everyone say ‘thank you Lele’,” he responds.

They all say “thank you Lele” together, though Donghyuck throws a few other words in the mix under his breath. Chenle chooses to ignore it for now.

“So it went well then?” Mark asks. 

They were staying in contact with their phones, yes, but that was nothing more than a confirmation that no one got caught or in any trouble and someone like Chenle didn’t text much since he was out with someone.

“As expected, I was given great information. Hyung had a bit to say about Choi,” Chenle says.

“Well then, you go first and the others can add on,” Jeno says.

They all settle down with their food, ready and listening for the information that was gathered.

“No problem. Well, I was told that he’s practically a 24/7 drinker but never drinks cheap liquor. He even orders alcohol in the middle of the night. But he drinks throughout the day and not all at one time which plays a part in him not being stupid drunk all the time. He also does most of his drinking in his room since he’s not allowed to drink at work or something; he does have a flask though. He told Hyung that on the last day of the shoot he’s throwing himself a celebration for his hard work. He’s scheduled to leave a day or two after that last day,” Chenle says.

“We can vouch for the flask comment and drinking throughout the day. On the videos we’ve seen, he doesn’t reach for his flask often but he does drink throughout the day. He has a good tolerance to alcohol,” Renjun chimes in.

“It’s also true that he can’t drink during the shoot. In between breaks maybe, if he can sneak it in, but the photographers won’t allow him to be anywhere near intoxicated for the photos. It makes sense that he drinks mostly in his room,” Donghyuck adds.

The way all of their information comes together without effort is a good sign. That means that everything they’ve found out is correct and they can work with it.

“Any idea when the last day of the shoot is?” Jaemin asks Donghyuck.

Donghyuck puts down his chopsticks and grabs his phone. He unlocks it and searches for whatever he’s looking for.

“The shoot is scheduled to end in a week. My guess is they did all the real secret work, or at least most of it, they were supposed to do with him during the two weeks he was ‘healing’ and now they’re just going through with the photos for cover story sake and probably for profit. It’s almost as if they scheduled for the postponement because the schedule doesn’t even seem slightly disturbed by the delay,” Donghyuck says, looking at the schedule he took a picture of.

“He probably wants to see his face in a magazine. He’s too conceited to not do a photoshoot even if he doesn’t have to,” Jisung says.

Jaemin suddenly pops up out of his seat with an unexplainable look on his face, food forgotten. He’s out of the room before anyone can say anything and goes upstairs.

“Uh, is he okay?” Chenle asks to anyone.

Jeno makes a face in response.

“Something tells me he just realized something and we aren’t going to like it,” Jeno replies.

They wait for Jaemin to come back down from whatever he’s doing. In the span of their waiting time, they hear a few loud curses come from upstairs, supporting Jeno’s statement.

Jaemin finally comes back downstairs with a stack of neatly organized papers and a case.

“The accident wasn’t an accident,” Jaemin says.

That…was not what they were expecting.

“Come again?” Jeno asks.

Jaemin puts the stack of papers down on the coffee table and spreads them out, clearly knowing which ones to show.

“The car accident wasn’t an accident. It was planned. They needed an excuse for him to spend more time here since a photoshoot can only take so long. His recovery time was planned. He’s a dumbass but he’s not actually that stupid to reach forward and grab the wheel just to be a brat. How else did he escape with only scratches when the other two had much worse? Clearly though, no one was expecting the accident to be that bad,” Jaemin says.

“Wait wait, you’re saying quite a big thing. You’re telling us that they planned the accident? How do you know? I’m not doubting you but we need proof because this will change everything,” Mark says.

Jaemin scans through certain papers, looking for a specific one. When he finally finds the one that has what he’s looking for, he picks it up to read aloud.

“Nakamoto Yuta: a broken tibia, a fractured 4th rib bone, a concussion, and a fractured radius. Seo Young Ho: deep cuts on multiple parts of the body from glass puncture, deep bruise near the right breastplate, and wound in left shoulder from puncture. Choi Minsun: light scratches on the face. Logically speaking Choi should have had much worse injuries unless he ducked for cover at impact. He would have had to know that Yuta hyung wasn’t going to be able to get the car under control in order to duck for cover in time.”

That is a valid point. They knew Choi had the least of the injuries but they didn’t think about it really.

“And with the direction they were going, if Choi wanted to go a different way then he would have turned the wheel right which would mean Johnny hyung would have the worst of the injuries, but he didn’t. Choi turned left at the intersection of a one way going the opposite direction. Why would he do that if it wasn’t planned? And then suddenly I’m sent in to help with Yuta hyung’s recovery while he recovers until he’s ready to do a photoshoot. It’s all a setup,” Jaemin explains.

The way realization crosses across everyone’s faces is sickening. 

They knew Choi meant bad news but this is a different level. He intended to hurt people. He purposely did this.

“That’s what he had to do with your parents. That-that’s why Yuta hyung-” Jeno cuts himself off, clenching his fist in thought.

_ “I’m sorry Nana, I’m sorry,” Yuta said, tears falling down his face. _

_ Jaemin squeezed his hand, giving Jeno, who’s standing a bit away for respect sake, a pained look. _

_ “What are you sorry for hyung?” Jaemin asked. _

_ “We let it happen again.” _

Jaemin and Jeno didn’t understand it when Yuta said it and chalked it up to pain speaking, hospital talk. Patients usually say weird things, especially if they just woke up from being unconscious. But now they understand. They know what he meant now.

“Damn it!” Jeno says angrily.

He gets up and walks away to the kitchen. It’s the first time they’ve seen him react this way with anything during this job. Even Jaemin flinched a bit at Jeno’s sudden outburst.

“I’ll talk to him later, don’t worry. For now, this is serious. This was intentional and that’s why my parents were so involved. But now that’s the shoot has started, they’ll lay off a bit because they actually have to focus on Hyung while Hyuck’s parents take care of Choi. Now is the best time to poison him because my parents aren’t being as observant,” Jaemin says.

The living room still has a shocked silence at the revelation. It’s kinda hard to believe that this was intentional but yet somehow it’s not.

“Damn, I’m really with Jaemin now. The bastard needs to die. We’re doing the world a favor by doing this,” Donghyuck says, breaking the silence.

“What he  _ NEEDS _ to do is burn in hell!” Jeno shouts from the kitchen.

Jaemin gives the group a half smile half grimace at the comment.

“Don’t mind him, he’s passionate. What I need to know now is the exact date of the last day of the photoshoot. I completed the drug. In three days exactly after he takes it, he dies. It’s tested chemically speaking so I’m sure it will work. All we need is a time and date,” Jaemin says, pointing to the case he brought down with him.

The case holds the drug he spent nights and days working on. His hard work, his creation, the one thing that’s going to save him from his nightmares. This is it.

“I’ll give you the exact date and time. How are we going to do it?” Donghyuck says.

“Like Lele said, he has a flask so that’s where it goes. It’s his own liquor so he wouldn’t hesitate to drink it. If we slip the drug in before a break then we’re good,” Jaemin says.

The way he’s taking charge of this plan is a sorta startling change from before how he was sitting back a bit. It’s a good change though. Before he looked like he was going through this plan like a spooked child; as if he’s planning something against the devil himself. But now, he’s taking charge, giving his ideas. His heart was in this plan before but now his soul is too.

“Okay good. How are we and who is slipping the drug in his drink?” Mark says.

“Jaemin should do it.”

Jeno suddenly appeared back in the living room, expression straight but controlled. 

Jaemin gives Jeno a look, once again having a conversation with their eyes—something they’ve been doing a lot of lately—but Jeno doesn’t seem to change his mind on what he said.

“You suggested the idea, you made the drug, you have the most reason to hate him; this should be your job. If anyone should kill him, if anyone should set up his death, it should be you,” Jeno says.

Eventually, Jaemin turns away from the power and emotion in Jeno’s stare. Though Jaemin still stands with an air of healthy and needed control and composure, his shoulders slump ever so slightly, a piece of that haunted persona he had before showing.

“Jeno’s right. Nana knows how much to use of the drug and if anyone could get close enough to get that flask, it’ll be him,” Renjun says.

“And with both our families involved this visit, he could come to the shoot with me without any suspicion,” Donghyuck contributes.

Jaemin looks back and forth between Donghyuck and Renjun, almost as if he doesn’t know whether to feel betrayed or warmed by them supporting Jeno’s idea.

“They have a point, Nana. You should be the one. Without your hard work, this job would be a lot harder,” Jisung says.

Yes, it’s true, they don’t understand everything involved, they’re missing pieces to the situation and reasoning. But if it’s one thing they can tell, it’s that this affects Jaemin the most. They don’t know what’s going on, why Jaemin and Choi seem to already know each other, why Jeno seems to know more than they do, or why Jaemin looks haunted at the mere mention of a hospital or Choi but they have faith in their friend and team member.  And if this job will help Jaemin with whatever it is he’s going through, then they’ll be with him every step of the way. He’ll tell them what it is when he’s ready. He always does.

“Besides, you’re so cute and innocent, who would question or suspect you?” Chenle adds, hoping to get Jaemin to smile a bit.

He succeeds, a fraction of a smile reaching Jaemin’s face.

“You’re the best person for that part of the job, Jaemin. We all know that. Do you?” Mark says, giving Jaemin a reassuring and comforting look.

Jaemin looks at all of his friends, truly touch that they have this faith in him. He knows he’s been a bit secretive lately but yet they’re still with him on this job. They believe he can do this.

But can he really? As much as he wants Choi gone, can he successfully put the drug in that flask and not freeze up? Will he be able to be in the same area as Choi for some time—without Jeno at that—and not breakdown? He wants and needs this job done but can he trust himself to get it done?

Jeno, already knowing Jaemin’s thoughts, puts a hand on the younger’s shoulder.

“Have faith in yourself Jaem, you’ll be able to do it. Hyuckie will be right there with you and you’re a pretty good actor. We all know you’ll be fine. Once that day is done, all we have to do is sit back and watch from the sidelines. It’ll be okay,” he says.

Jisung and Mark nod in agreement, Renjun gives a smile, and Chenle makes a heart with his hands. Donghyuck steps forward and grabs Jaemin’s face in his hands, Jeno willingly stepping aside for him.

“We’re going to be the best team there is so don’t doubt us now, Na Jaemin. We’ll poison that sucker and come back to party like we did the first time. Who says Markie, Lele, and Jeno get to have all the fun?” Donghyuck says, getting Jaemin to chuckle.

It’s actually refreshing for Jaemin to hear Donghyuck joke around with him. Donghyuck always has his back and always knows how to make him feel lighter, just like the sun Donghyuck really is. He needs the laughter, especially since he’s going to go through with this.

“Alright alright, I’ll do it but don’t you dare leave me alone Hyuckie. How else will we prove that we’re the superior team?” Jaemin replies.

Donghyuck squishes Jaemin’s cheeks in delight, showing everyone’s happiness in getting Jaemin to have confidence in this.

“You get a new partner and I’m suddenly thrown to the curb. After everything I’ve done for you,” Jeno says in fake hurt.

“Don’t worry Jeno, according to Nana, as the oldest I will always choose you guys since I’m so great. I’ll be your partner if you want,” Mark says, panting Jeno on the back teasingly.

They all laugh, especially when Donghyuck hugs Jaemin and sticks his tongue out at Jeno. 

“Yah, so disrespectful. You’re lucky he’s going to need you for this part or else I’d teach you some manners,” Jeno says to Donghyuck.

“Still trying to accomplish that miracle I see,” Renjun remarks.

Donghyuck turns Jaemin away from them.

“Don’t listen to them Nana, they’re just jealous that we get to be the best pair there is. Ignoring the haters, I’ll get you that date by tomorrow, I have to confirm something about the schedule first and then I can tell you what day we’re going,” Donghyuck says, looking over his shoulder at Jeno and Renjun. 

Jaemin smiles in return.

“I’ll be counting on it,” he says.

Once they get a confirmed date, then they can really get this job rolling. In a matter of days, they’ll sign, seal, and deliver Choi Minsun’s death.

And it’ll all be in a pretty little silver flask.

* * *

 

“You’ve been very quiet since we woke up.”

Jaemin tried not to move too much while speaking so he wouldn’t mess up Jeno who is currently applying his concealer for him.

“Hmm?”

It’s the most sound Jaemin got out of Jeno this morning which is a tell-tale sign that something is up with the older.

“Since we woke up at five in the morning, you haven’t said a single thing and it’s approaching ten right now. Before that hmm, the last sound I heard you make was when you were singing me back to sleep at one. What’s wrong Jeno-yah?” Jaemin says.

Jeno continues to apply the finishing touches of makeup to Jaemin’s face, strangely more concentrated on it now.

He doesn’t speak until he finishes Jaemin’s makeup.

“I don’t know what you mean, Nana. You haven’t said anything so I thought we were having another silent moment,” Jeno finally speaks.

Jaemin frowns as Jeno now takes his time to check over the makeup job he just did as if Jaemin was going on tv and not just going outside. He can tell that Jeno is purposely putting all his attention on one thing.

“You should know better than to lie to me. Something is on your mind and it has been there since last week when we gathered all that information,” Jaemin replies.

It’s silent and neither of them moves for a moment. It’s almost as if time itself froze and they froze with it; Jaemin waiting for Jeno to respond and Jeno just not moving.

Suddenly then, Jeno begins to run his hand gently through Jaemin’s hair, staring at it with a distressed look that he’s failing to hide.

Jaemin slowly takes the hand out of his hair and squeezes it, making Jeno turn his gaze directly at Jaemin.

“Tell me what’s wrong Nono, please?” Jaemin says softly.

Jeno stares at him in silence for a moment before sighing, changing his hand position to hold Jaemin’s.

“I’m scared,” he says.

It’s as if those words were the key to unlock the gates that were weakly trying to hide his real emotions. His face just became ten times more expressive and Jaemin knows Jeno is speaking very honestly.

“Scared of what?” Jaemin asks.

Their voices don’t rise to normal conversation level but it still fills the room as if they were speaking into a mic. It’s just them with each other.

“Scared of today. You’re going to face him today and I don’t know what’s going to happen. I already failed to keep you safe from him twice, what if I fail a third time? I don’t doubt that you can do the job today but what about after? What if he says or does something to you and you breakdown or your nightmares get worse? I didn’t protect you from that; I promised to protect you from him but I already failed you twice,” Jeno says, pain in his voice.

Jaemin almost melts in sympathy at the words. He watched Jeno go a week in his mind, lost in his thoughts, and all this time they were thoughts filled with doubt and remorse. He feels like he failed him. While they were planning, while they were talking, while they were up in the night; all Jeno could think of was worry and how he failed him.

“Oh Jeno-yah, you didn’t fail me. I can’t promise you that today is going to go well but I can tell you that you’re doing great. You’ve done everything you can for me and after today we won’t have to worry about him ever again,” Jaemin replies.

“But I didn’t do everything. I should have figured it out earlier from back when we were being told about him. I should have made the connection when Yuta hyung told us about when he picked him up at the airport. If I would have paid more attention, maybe we could have prevented the accident and you being part of his scheme once again. And now, all I’m doing is lying to our friends and letting them do my job in helping you without any knowledge.”

Jeno breaks eye contact as he drops his head in shame and disappointment. He’s so mad at himself. How could he say he protects and watches out for Jaemin when he let this happen again? And now he’s going to send Jaemin in to deal with that monster once again and all he can do is watch from the side. He’s a terrible team member, a terrible friend.

Jaemin is not having that though.

He uses his free hand to lift Jeno’s head a bit, tilting his own to meet the elder's eyes.

“You didn’t do anything wrong. If anyone should have figured it out sooner, it should have been me. I actually dealt with him before, actually met and talked to him before. I out of all people should have known before all of this but I didn’t. It’s my fault we’re all in this mess since the very beginning.”

“Nana, that’s not true. You’re doing-”

“The best I can? I know I am and so are you, so why can you hold things like that against yourself but I can’t hold it against myself? We both didn’t realize when we should have but we can’t get mad at ourselves for it. We’re both doing the best we can, Nono, so don’t beat yourself up.”

At one point, Jaemin too felt that he should have known earlier or at least caught on to Choi after he met him again in the hospital. He should have realized it all, especially after his mother came. He knew it was Choi’s idea for Jaemin to work with his parents in the hospital this time but he thought it stopped there. He was mad at himself for thinking such a stupid thing. So he understands Jeno’s thinking. He understands why that guilt can be there.

But just because he understands doesn’t mean they should accept those feelings like that.

“But-”

“No buts,” Jaemin cuts in, “you’re doing great. Yes, you didn’t stop the accident, or stop me from having nightmares, or tell the truth to our friends but that doesn’t mean you failed. There was nothing we could have done about that car accident. You spend countless nights staying up with me, hugging me and singing to me and talking with me, just to soothe my mind. You’re lying to our friends because I begged you to and you’re respecting my wishes. You’ve done everything and I really appreciate it all. I really do.”

Jaemin stares into Jeno’s eyes, giving the elder a soft smile. His words help take a bit of the edge off of Jeno’s mind and face, the elder relaxing a fraction.

“You mean it? Honestly mean it?” Jeno asks, worry still a bit in his voice.

Jaemin’s smile turns into a cheeky one.

“Would I, Na Jaemin, your best friend of many years, the sweetest human being who has ever graced your presence, ever lie to you, Lee Jeno, king of the eye smiles and terrible jokes?” He replies in exaggeration.

A chuckle sneaks up Jeno’s throat and Jeno tries to hold it in. Jaemin already heard it though and his smile turns into a grin. He gives Jeno a funny look, waiting for the laughter to come.

He doesn’t have to wait long.

Staring at Jaemin for those few more seconds broke Jeno’s control and he bursts out laughing at Jaemin’s silliness.

“There’s my Jeno. Your poor soul must have been suffering without your every five minutes laughing,” Jaemin says with his own chuckle.

Jeno reigns his laughter in with a smile.

“It was. Thanks Jaem, I needed that,” he says.

“Anytime. Now come on, the guys will be here in like thirty minutes so we should appreciate the calmness now before we have to go into work mode,” Jaemin replies.

He helps Jeno put back their too many bottles of makeup in their concealed spots (pun completely intended), grabs the drug, and then they go downstairs to wait for the others. They spend the time waiting talking about whatever just to calm their nerves before they really have to go out and do their job.

The doorbell rings after about thirty-five minutes of them talking to each other. Jaemin gets up from his spot and goes open the door, letting his friends come in.

“Before anything, please tell me you two actually ate breakfast this time,” Mark says.

“Don’t worry, we did. We’re all ready to go,” Jeno responds.

It was a silent breakfast—not a comfortable silence either—but a breakfast nonetheless. They didn’t want the others to worry about anything other than this job today.

“Good. Is everyone ready to debrief? Hyuck said they have to be there at a certain time so we can’t waste any time here,” Mark says.

Everyone nods. It’s best to get this job started sooner than later. The sooner this is finished, the better.

“We have to be there before eleven-thirty if we want to be there before the shoot starts. We have to spend a good bit of time there so the excuse I told our parents seems reasonable, so Jaemin, call for your driver now,” Donghyuck says.

Jaemin nods and pulls out his phone to text for his driver to come to pick him and Donghyuck up.

“It’s still only you and Jaemin going in?” Jeno asks.

“Yeah, both of our parents are worried about your parents trying to use one of you guys to win over Choi more so they’re only allowing us two,” Donghyuck replies.

Leave it to their parents to constantly think about getting ahead of each other.

“That’s fine then. You two are the best for this anyway. Just make sure you stay in contact. Do you want to use earpieces or our cell phones?” Renjun asks.

“Let’s use our phones. It looks more casual and who knows if one of the secretaries are there for some reason. They know what are earpieces look like; we don’t want to tip to them that we are there for any reason other than what was told,” Jaemin says.

It’s known that their parents all try to find a way to have some influence on Choi to benefit themselves so it wouldn’t be a surprise if any of the secretaries minus Yuta are there. And though they trust the elders with the knowledge of DREAM, they don’t want them to even think they’re there for ulterior motives. Even after the deed has been done and Choi finally dies, they will have to make them believe that death has nothing to do with them at all, at least for a good while. Secondhand guilt is a thing that they don’t want them to experience.

“Good call. I’ll be in the camera system to keep an eye for you both and tell you where you should be so no cameras see you when it’s time to put the drug in. Alert us if anything goes wrong,” Renjun replies.

“And don’t be afraid to call if you need to,” Jeno adds.

Jaemin and Donghyuck nod in unison. They’ll need the bird’s eye view since they want to make sure nothing hints to them in any way, shape, or form. One careless move and everything turns for the worst. They have to take extra precautions this time.

“We’ll be here if you need a fake emergency. I can’t fake cry as well as Nana but I sure can scream my lungs out in fake panic,” Chenle says.

“Oh we know,” Jisung mumbles, receiving an elbow from Chenle afterward.

Donghyuck chuckles at the two youngers.

“We’ll be sure to keep that in mind,” he says.

“Do you guys know how you’re going to get the flask?” Jisung asks.

That is a big part of the job and it’s not like they have Jisung there to steal for them. They need to know in advance what they’re going to do.

“It’s going to be in his coat. During one of the shots, Hyuck is going to tell them to have Choi take off his jacket. When it’s off and hung up, I’ll take the flask. I’ll put it back exactly where I found it when I’m finished,” Jaemin replies.

It’s a good thing that Donghyuck has enough authority and say to put in his input on how some of the photos should come out. That makes things easier for them.

“That’s a good idea. Good luck with it,” Chenle says.

“Thanks. Anything else we need to know?” Donghyuck asks.

“I don’t think so. This is really you guys part so we’ll be waiting for your word. Make sure you watch each other and don’t let that creep get too close to Jaemin if he doesn’t have to. I still don’t like the way he looks and speaks to him,” Mark says.

The others wholeheartedly agree with that comment, Jeno clearly agreeing the most. 

“Don’t worry, I’m willing to cause a scene if I think he’s crossing a line. We have each other’s backs, right Nana?” Donghyuck replies.

Jaemin smiles in return.

“Of course we do. There’s no better team than us two, sorry Jeno,” Jaemin says.

“I’ll remember that the next time you want to spend the night awake playing games and talking,” Jeno replies, causing Jaemin to chuckle.

“Don’t mind him. Let’s go prove to him that we are the best. You have the drug?” Donghyuck says.

Jaemin nods and shows the vial that holds the drug that he worked on for quite some time now. This has got to be the hardest and most complex thing he has created and he’s really proud about it.

“I wouldn’t forget it for the world. I’m as ready as I can be,” Jaemin responds.

He hopes he can keep this confidence throughout the time he’s there. He turns to the others as he puts back the vial in his pocket.

“If anyone shows up here for any reason, everyone but Jeno hide. My parents have been making random visits lately since Choi arrived and they don’t need to know that you guys are here while we’re out. Jeno is supposed to be here so it’s okay if they see him,” he adds.

Hopefully, once Choi is gone, his parents will go back to ignoring him more frequently. He’s seen his parents more times in these few weeks than he has in his entire life. It’s quite honestly disturbing for a lack of a better term.

“Alright, understood. Now, you two, get going and good luck. We’ll see you when you return,” Mark says.

“Okay. Come on Hyuck, the driver is outside,” Jaemin says.

They turn and head to the door. They haven’t even left the house yet and Jaemin can already feel his heart beating faster.

“Hey, Jaem.”

Jaemin turns around and looks at Jeno.

“Good luck okay. Hyuck is with you, don’t forget that,” Jeno says.

As in a sign of agreement, Donghyuck puts his hand on Jaemin’s shoulder in support. Jaemin isn’t going to be alone through this.

“Thank you,” Jaemin responds.

He and Donghyuck finally turn back around and leave the house. They get in the car and they’re off to the set of the photoshoot.

Jaemin tries to calm his nerves in the car the closer they get to their destination. Donghyuck notices but chooses not to say anything, instead deciding to just play with the younger’s hand in an attempt to help. Jaemin repeats to himself over and over that Donghyuck is with him and this will go smoothly. He will complete this job and be okay.

They reach the location of the shoot by eleven-fifteen, making good timing already.

“You ready for this?” Donghyuck asks Jaemin once they are out of the car.

Jaemin takes a deep breath.

“As ready as I’ll ever be. Come on, let’s go be the best members like we know we are,” he replies.

“Alright then, let’s go,” Donghyuck says.

They walk into the building, Donghyuck leading the way, and try to appear as normal as they can. It isn’t often that Lee Donghyuck decides to visit one of his parents' shoots but no one will make a deal out of it. It is a sight though for him to bring someone along with him so if they act like it’s completely normal maybe fewer people will pay them attention.

“Heads up, the director is a total stick in the mud. You’ll hear him yell a few times and give pointless directions, even to those not a part of the shoot, and overall be annoying. If he says anything, ignore it and/or wave your status over him. You’re not here for him,” Donghyuck says.

“I’ll keep that in mind though I hope he doesn’t. I don’t like using my surname over people,” Jaemin responds.

“Trust me, I understand that. But just in case, be ready to,” Donghyuck says.

They reach to the set of the shoot and it’s almost like they’ve transported to a completely different world. Everything is suddenly busy, people are moving around quickly, and equipment is being moved all over the place. It’s a drastic change from the regular calm pace that was happening everywhere else in this building. It’s a good thing that Jaemin has been to his fair share of photoshoot sets or else that would have really surprised him.

“I already texted the others that we’re here. Let’s go stand somewhere and act like we’re interested in all of this until the shoot starts,” Donghyuck says.

They choose to stand near the makeup artists, the only thing they’re even slightly interested in at the moment. It also keeps them out of the traffic area of where everyone else is walking back and forth.

They spend a few minutes there having light conversation with whoever stops to talk to them and flashing charismatic smiles to those who are either too busy or too shy to come and talk to them. It’s actually relatively peaceful and easygoing for them.

That is until the devil himself entered on the scene.

“I have arrived. Everything better be ready this time. You peasants aren’t being paid to stand around. I am,” Choi shouts as he walks in.

Jaemin and Donghyuck watch as the mood on everyone’s faces changes for the worse. Everyone looks so sour now as if they really hate their jobs.

It’s official, they’re doing literally EVERYONE a favor by getting rid of him.

“He’s honestly the worst human being I have ever had the misfortune of knowing,” Donghyuck says.

“And even that seems like an understatement,” Jaemin replies.

The workers scurry around, with less energy this time, at the appearance of Choi. The boys feel sorry for them all.

But it seems they aren’t safe from him either.

Choi’s eyes land directly on Jaemin as if he has some weird sense that detects when Jaemin is present. He makes a steady path over to Jaemin without any hesitation.

“Na Jaemin! What a surprise to see you here. Did you miss me so much that you wanted to see me work?” Choi says, approaching the younger.

Instead of drawing everyone’s attention with his loud voice, everyone actually turns away as if they aren’t supposed to be watching. It really is every man for themselves when it comes to Choi.

“Hello to you too. And if you must know, I’m accompanying Donghyuck today. I needed a change of scenery other than the hospital,” Jaemin says as politely as he could.

He doesn’t fail to notice how Donghyuck steps closer to him as Choi was speaking to him. They meant it when they said they won’t let him deal with Choi alone.

“You became tired of the hospital already? Well, you better get used to it then since you’ll be spending a lot of time there in your future,” Choi says with that smugness he always seems to carry.

Half of Jaemin wants to punch him straight in the nose and the other half of him wants to walk away and hide until this day is over. Unfortunately, he can’t listen to either option so he’s just going to have to stand here and deal with this mess.

“It’s been a while since he’s hung out with me, we’re only killing two birds with one stone. But I fear we’re taking up some of your time here. If everything is to stay on schedule, we should let you go. I heard this is so far one of the best photoshoots that we’ve had in a while so I’m excited to see today’s work,” Donghyuck replies for Jaemin.

Jaemin mentally thanks Donghyuck for cutting in and saving him from having to respond. He doesn’t even think he had a response to that. Not a good one at least.

Choi just gives Donghyuck a smile and Jaemin can physically see Donghyuck restraining himself from saying something.

“I guess you’re right little Lee. We’ll continue our conversation later then. Enjoy the shoot,  _ Jamie _ ,” Choi says.

Choi walks away and it takes all of Jaemin’s will to not do something stupid. Instead, he chooses to dig his nails into his palm as a reminder to stay put and quiet.

It’s not until Choi is a good distance away does Donghyuck turns to Jaemin.

“Why does he keep calling you that?” He asks.

Jaemin stares at Choi’s retreating figure, nails still digging into his palm.

“Because he likes taunting me.”

Donghyuck doesn’t fully understand what that means—taunting him about what exactly—but he decides to leave it alone for now. He’ll put it under the ‘things Jaemin will eventually explain to all us’ category.

“Well, he’s gone for now so let’s do what we’re here for. I don’t really understand how anything is working right now since everything is being changed due to the situation and client. A break is going to happen probably sooner than normal though since the person they’re dealing with is  _ that _ ,” Donghyuck says, pointing to the general direction of Choi.

Jaemin turns to Donghyuck, finally releasing his grip on his palm.

“So what does that mean for us?” He asks.

“It means that we stand around looking pretty, act interested, and wait for that break. The sooner the better and then we can find an excuse to get out of here early,” Donghyuck replies.

Jaemin is all down for getting out of here sooner than later. He really doesn’t know if he can last long with Choi.

“Well then, what are we waiting for? Let’s go,” Jaemin says.

They move away from the spot they were standing at to go get a better view of everything. They take a seat behind the director and watch as everything happens.

Jaemin notices that Donghuck wasn’t exaggerating when he said the director was a real stick in the mud. The man was even bold enough to tell Donghyuck to get off of his phone when he was texting the others. Of course, it didn’t go well and Donghyuck threatened to use his phone to get the man fired. If it’s one thing both Donghyuck and Chenle are scarily good at, it’s pretending to be a rich brat.

He takes the time to look around for potentially good spots that would be out of sight enough for him to put the drug in when he gets the chance. He decides to take his chance and pulls out his phone and text Renjun. 

_ ‘Random question: Where should I get coffee?’ _

Translation being where should he pour the drug. If anyone checked their message though, it seems like a perfectly normal conversation, completely unrelated to anything related to this.

_ ‘Isn’t there coffee there? Hyuck wouldn’t bring you to a place that doesn’t have coffee near for you. Just make sure you don’t use milk this time or else you’ll end up in the Bathroom again sick.’ _

Okay, he’ll go to the coffee maker then but will actually pour the drug in the bathroom. It makes sense, there’s never any cameras in the bathroom so no one will see him pour the drug there. His guess is that Renjun wants him to fake getting sick from milk. If that isn’t what Renjun wants him to do then oh well because that’s what he’s going to do.

_ ‘No promises. Thanks for replying, Hyuck isn’t paying me any attention.’ _

He puts away his phone after Renjun texts him ‘whatever’ and waits for the time to act. He can’t wait to get this over with. He doesn’t know what’s worse, his boredom or his nerves.

Eventually, Donghyuck gets up and looks at some of the shots with a critical eye. It’s clear that the director is not very fond of Donghyuck but he can’t really say anything to the young Lee. Donghyuck can seriously get the man fired if he wanted to.

Finally, Donghyuck speaks up.

“Have him take a few shots without the jacket. Let’s put some variety in these photos,” he says.

The director seems offended by the comment.

“The photos look perfectly fine. I am the director here, I’ll decide what he should do, thank you very much,” he says.

Donghyuck gives him a bright smile and he almost looks like an angel.

“And I’m the one with the family name that can ruin your career completely. So either you make the shots the way I want them or I’ll find someone who can, thank you very much,” he chirps in reply.

And times like this Jaemin remembers that the devil was an angel once too.

Donghyuck really is his parents’ kid. They’d be so proud of him this moment.

The director clenches his jaw but turns back away from Donghyuck.

“Please take off your jacket for the next few photos,” he says to Choi through clenched teeth.

Choi doesn’t argue—he seems to find that entire scene amusing—and just takes off his jacket.

“Hey Jamie, come here and hold my jacket,” Choi says.

Now it’s Jaemin’s turn to be irritated. It really strikes a nerve when Choi calls him that. He doesn’t even like it when his mother calls him that so why would he ever tolerate it coming from that man’s mouth.

“You would like me to hang it up for you?” He replies.

“No, I want you to hold it until I can put it back on. I don’t let my clothes just touch any old hanger,” Choi says.

Jaemin almost tells the man no along with a few other words but he looks to Donghyuck and sees the look the older gives him.

That’s right, they’re here for a reason. Him holding the jacket just makes their job easier. He just has to suck it up and get through this time and then this is all over with. Choi is over with.

So with those thoughts, Jaemin walks over to Choi and grabs the coat with a polite smile.

“That’s the good boy your mother raised,” Choi says quietly to him.

Every ounce of him hates Choi’s existence. He hates that smirk, he hates those comments, he hates the power he holds, he hates how afraid of him he is. He hates all of Choi.

But he doesn’t respond. Instead, he just walks away to go do the task he’s here for.

The photoshoot continues on and Jaemin gives Donghyuck a nod. The time for sitting is over. Now it’s time for DREAM to do their job.

Jaemin makes sure the flask is indeed in the coat before asking one of the workers if they could please make him a large cup of coffee. It’s going to be nowhere near as strong as he usually drinks it but that’s fine. He had himself a good cup earlier, he can last a bit longer. He feels a bit bad that they’re going to be a part of his little act, especially since the person can get in trouble if he actually got sick, but he has to do what he has to do.

The person returns with his cup of coffee and he thanks them. He decides to go over and add a boatload of sugar to make it thick at the bottom and secretly some milk when no one is looking. He pretends to take a few sips while everyone is still focused on their work.

He heads back over to where Donghyuck is and taps him on the shoulder.

“About to go pour the drug in the flask. There’s milk in the coffee. If anyone asks, I’m throwing my stomach up and no I don’t need or want anyone that isn’t you to check on me,” Jaemin whispers in Donghyuck’s ear.

Donghyuck nods and gives him a thumbs up.

Jaemin takes a seat to realistically let time pass by before he pretends to be sick. He hopes karma doesn’t get him back for whatever reason and he ends up having a run in with his intolerance to dairy because damn that is not fun.

He waits for about fifteen minutes before deciding that was a good amount of time. 

He shoots up out of his seat, still holding the jacket and cup tightly, and runs to the bathroom as if his feet were on fire. He partially hears Donghyuck tell someone not to chase after him and something about an allergy before he reaches the bathroom. He locks himself in a stall and, after noticing a pair feet present, pretends to start retching, pouring some of the coffee with him in the toilet to make it sound believable. 

At the sound of his distress, the person in the bathroom goes and knocks on his stall door.

“Are you alright in there?” They ask.

He pretends to retch a bit more before coughing up.

“Dong-Donghyuck. Get Dong-”

And then he cuts himself off and starts gagging.

By the person’s panicked footsteps, he can tell that they ran out in order to get Donghyuck. It doesn’t take long before the door opens again, this time two pairs of feet being seen.

Once again, he pretends to throw up and he hears Donghyuck tell whoever’s with him that he has it under control. 

“They’re gone now, and I locked the door so no one can come in,” Donghyuck says.

Jaemin gets off of his knees and unlocks the stall door. He comes out with the jacket tied around his waist and coffee cup in hand.

“You’re freakishly good at pretending to throw up and I want to know why,” Donghyuck says, not too loudly just in case someone is listening in from the outside.

“I needed different ways to get out of all those activities my parents put me in. Not everyone can pretend to be a brat you know,” Jaemin replies.

He throws away the empty cup and washes and dries his hands well since he was just gripping a toilet.

“Well glad to know you have a skill we can use for another time. Now, get going before they want to call a doctor for you or something,” Donghyuck says.

Jaemin nods and grabs a napkin. He uses it to take out the flask, so as not to leave fingerprints on it, and unscrews the top. He reaches in his pocket and grabs the vial.

“It’s a shame we won’t be there to watch him croak. I worked hard on this drug, I’d like to see the results,” Jaemin says, staring at the vial a little.

“That sounds kinda creepy and mad scientist-y but go off I guess,” Donghyuck replies.

Jaemin chuckles and opens the top of the vial. With one fair motion, he pours the entire thing in the flask, the liquid mixing without a trace. When he finishes, he closes and pockets the vial again before screwing back on the top of the flask.

He gives it one good shake to ensure that it mixes well and then puts back the flask where he found it.

“And we’re done. Now go back out there and tell them I’m a bit stable but it’s best for us to go home. I’ll ‘clean myself up’,” Jaemin says.

“Copy that. I’ll tell the others too,” Donghyuck replies.

He unlocks the bathroom door and heads out. 

Jaemin turns on the water and pretends to clean around his mouth a bit before checking himself out in the mirror. He stares at his reflection, noticing the good job Jeno did with his concealer.

He can’t wait for the day where he no longer has to use it to hide his dark circles daily. He can’t wait for the day for his nightmares to disappear and he can get proper sleep. He wants to spend that day with his friends, having a sleepover to show that not only can he sleep for the entire night, but he can sleep without having to worry about waking anyone up. God, he can’t wait for that day.

He’s snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of the door opening. He turns to see the one person he didn’t want to see.

Choi Minsun.

“Aww, little Jamie got sick. The milk got to you? Do you want me to get that incompetent worker fired for you?” Choi says in a mocking tone, locking the bathroom door.

“The only thing I want you to do is to stop calling me Jamie. And here, take your coat back. It made throwing up harder,” Jaemin responds, holding out the jacket.

Choi takes the jacket back with that smirk still present on your face.

“You know, I don’t know which side of you I like better. The side that has a bite or the side that’s a big crybaby who can’t handle a little pain. You were so cute crying in that hospital bed,” Choi says.

Jaemin’s jaw clenches and he uses all of his restraint to stay put.

“What do you want from me? Why are you so interested in me? You got what you wanted so why do you keep taunting me?” Jaemin demands.

Choi’s smirk only seems to grow as he steps forward closer to Jaemin.

“You’re fun to mess with. I’ve seen a lot of people do a lot of things to stay in my good favor and keep my business but never have I ever seen someone like your mother. She’s more than willing to go the extra mile for her work and doesn’t care who it affects, not even if it’s her precious little son,” he says.

Jaemin feels his eyes begin to sting and his back begins to ache but he refuses to break in front of this man. He refuses to look weak in front of him again.

“Then go mess with her. Now if you’ll excuse me, I feel like crap and want to go home before another wave of cramping hits me. I’m pretty but trust me even I look bad when I puke,” Jaemin responds.

Choi casually steps back and goes in his jacket. He pulls out the flask and Jaemin has to control his face from showing any surprise. He didn’t think he would be able to watch Choi drink his poison.

But he does. He stands there and watches as Choi unscrews the flask and takes a big gulp from it.

That’s it. His death is signed. In three days he is going to die.

Jaemin begins to hear his heartbeat in his ears and he knows it’s adrenaline. He doesn’t know from what though. Is it because he’s happy that this man is finally going to die? Is he worried that someone will catch on or worse, the drug won’t work? He doesn’t know but his heart is beating loudly.

“Go ahead then. I just came in for my liquor. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of each other soon,” Choi says.

Somehow, Jaemin’s feet start to move though his mind is still frozen in his nerves. But even through the mess that is going on in his mind, he hears Choi’s parting words.

“Say hi to Nakamoto for me.”

It’s mocking. It’s insulting. It makes Jaemin’s blood boil. How dare this man even act as if he cares about Yuta after what he did? He doesn’t even deserve to say Yuta’s name. It pisses him off.

So he can’t help himself from responding.

“Say hi to the devil for me.”

He walks out of the bathroom before Choi can respond. He doesn’t know how suspicious that sounded or if it only sounded plain rude but at this moment he doesn’t care. He doesn’t have it in him to care.

He pulls out his phone and quickly sends a text to Jeno.

_ ‘I don’t want to talk to anyone. Send them home, tell them I’m drained and just want to rest. I just want to be left alone.’ _

He gets a response almost immediately.

_ ‘Okay but you have to explain to me what’s wrong sometime today.’ _

He doesn’t respond but does mentally acknowledge that he’ll have to tell Jeno at the very least.

He meets up with Donghyuck without a word and the older doesn’t try to get him to speak. His guess is that Jeno already informed him that something happened. They just leave the set without any issues.

Only once on their way out of the building does Donghyuck speak.

“I’m sorry Jaemin.”

Jaemin doesn’t have to wonder about what. He knows that Donghyuck is referring to him being left alone with Choi for a bit. But that’s not his fault.

“Don’t be,” Jaemin replies and then falls silent again.

Jaemin won’t blame Donghyuck for leaving him alone. He won’t blame any of his friends for anything that happened during this entire job from the moment he suggested it. They’re the ones doing a job with only half of the facts, if that much. They’re the ones putting faith and trust in him and he can’t even tell them the full story. Even Jeno, who does know the full story, can’t be blamed for anything. He’s just going along with what he is told. Jaemin knows that anything that happens is on him and him alone.

But he’ll fix that. In a matter of days, he’ll tell them all what they deserve to know. He’ll tell them everything he has been hiding. He’ll tell them the story and why he was so determined to kill Choi Minsun. He’ll tell him that he’s had nightmares for too long and he’s been suffering mentally. He’ll tell them that he made the drug stronger than he needed to so that Choi can have a painful death. He’ll tell them how bitter his heart has been for years now. He’ll explain the real reason why his parents are home less often than the other parents. He’ll explain why his mother is more passively controlling these past few years than she was before his injury.

He’ll explain everything.

* * *

 

The service was short and small.

When you live being hated by people, you die alone and no one cares. The only ones who showed up to the burial were the three Lee families, the Huang family, the Na family, the Zhong family, and the Park family. No one else, not even his own family, came to pay their respects.

Choi Minsun was a man hated by everyone he came into contact with. The only reason they’re here is to look good. It’d look bad if they didn’t give their last client a proper burial, especially after he died in their care.

The seven boys’ parents finally leave after they are sure that all of the press left, leaving them alone in front of the tombstone of the man they killed.

Jaemin stares at the stone with no emotion crossing his face. He just stares as his friends stand behind him watching.

“Let’s go home now Jaem. It’s all over,” Jeno says.

He grabs Jaemin’s hand and gives it a light tug but Jaemin resists, pulling his hand away from Jeno with a shake of his head.

“No, I want to stay longer. I want to take this moment in,” he says, not taking his eyes off of the tombstone in front of him.

Jeno looks to him worriedly and Jaemin can practically feel it on the back of his neck. But he pays it no mind. He just continues to look in front of him.

“Jaemin?” Jeno says.

“I want to tell them now.”

That catches Jeno off guard but he doesn’t argue against it.

“Are you sure? Do you want to go back to your house and tell them?” Jeno asks.

“I’m sure. I want to do it here. I want to do it here so the dead bastard’s spirit can hear me,” Jaemin responds.

Jeno just nods and then turns to the others.

“It’s going to be quite a story. Don’t...don’t interrupt him okay. I don’t know if he’ll make it to the end but let’s give him the chance,” he says to them.

They don’t really understand exactly what’s going on but they know it’s serious so they go with the flow and let it happen.

“We’ll give him all of the time he needs. We’ll wait and listen,” Mark says.

“Thank you,” Jeno responds.

He turns back to Jaemin, who still hasn’t looked away from the stone yet.

“Whenever you’re ready Jaem,” Jeno says.

It’s silent for a bit but no one rushes Jaemin to start speaking. They all wait patiently for him to start like they said they would.

Finally, after a few minutes, Jaemin starts to speak.

“I’ve been in pain for so long and it’s all because of him. It was all his fault that I was in pain. It was all his fault I suffered nightmares for so long. It was his fault that I can barely stand the sight of my own mother at times. All of it, all of it was because of him,” Jaemin says.

It’s a heavy statement to start with. It almost makes their breaths hitch but they managed to stay quiet. They realized though what Jaemin is going to talk about. He’s going to explain everything they were wondering since the moment Yuta and Johnny were sent to the hospital weeks ago.

“I met him a while ago, a week before my injury actually. My mother introduced him as an important client but I didn’t pay much attention to his name or face. She told me that he’d be doing business with her for a bit and it’s all for the better. I didn’t know what she meant and I thought she meant he was doing business with both of my parents. I found out in a matter of days that I was wrong and I was an idiot for not understanding,” he says.

He remembers that that was around the time where he still had respect for his mother. Yes, he knew he was neglected and was over the absence in the house but he at least respected her work habits. He respected that she worked well and faithfully with his father. He had respect for his mother. 

But he lost it all in one moment.

“Days after that, I was in the hospital and in the worst pain I’ve ever felt. I couldn’t even move. Everyone was told it was a tragic accident but my mother was bravely taking charge of my recovery. She was praised for the miracle she pulled off in healing me without any issues and her credibility went through the roof. But my respect for her disappeared completely. You see, it wasn’t an accident. I knew that from the second it happened. I was attacked as everyone knows. What people don’t know is that the people who attacked me were workers for her. I remember seeing their faces closely. I remember staring into their eyes and cursing my mother out in my head. She sent those men after me so I could be tragically injured only for my loving mother to risk her entire career to help me. The press ate up the concerned but brave mother story like crazy.”

At this moment, everyone listening, minus Jeno, wants to say something. They want to jump up and shout. They want to chase after Jaemin’s mother and curse her out themselves. They want to tackle Jaemin in a hug and tell them how sorry they are for what happened to him. But they’re going to stick to their word and stay quiet and let him finish.

“I hated every moment she walked into that hospital room and acted like she really cared about me even though she was the reason I was in there. I hated when I’d cry from the unbearable pain and she’d sit at the edge of my bed, carding her hand through my hair, and whispering sweet words to me. She’d say that mommy would make it all better. That mommy will make me as good as new as long as I believed in her and kept quiet. Even my father didn’t know initially about what she did and when he found out, I was already completely healed but it’s not like he cared. Oh how I hated my mother more than I ever did before in my life.”

His eyes start to tear up so he wipes them furiously. He refuses to cry. He’s cried enough about her, about this.

“But I hated someone more than I hated her and that person was Choi Minsun. He was the one who gave the idea to her. He told her that she was less popular than my father due to being a woman and the only way to raise her publicity was to pull off a miracle healing. He told her that the world would love it if she helped her only child all on her own, using her maternal instinct in not wanting to see her child in pain as a motivation to heal me completely and better than ever before. He gave her the idea and she went along with it without hesitating.”

Connections start happening in the minds of those listening to the story. Things that happened during this job that were confusing are slowly becoming clearer. They don’t know if to feel sick or extremely upset. They think they feel both right now.

“He would visit me in the night and taunt me. He would laugh at how I’d flinch whenever my mother would walk in the room. He’d laugh at my pain and taunt me over the fact that I meant nothing to my mother. He loved the fact that he had enough power to get a mother to harm their only child for the sake of publicity. One night when my mother wasn’t there with him, he told me that that wasn’t the only way for my mother to gain good publicity. He said there were so many other ways but he wanted to see if my mother would actually harm me. He did that for a power trip and he held it over me until the day he left. It messed with my head so much.”

He remembers the second he healed, he stormed into his mother’s office and destroyed it because she was selfish enough to do this to him. He wanted her to know what her listening to this man did to him. He wanted to show her his anger.

“I’m such an idiot for not recognizing him the second I heard his name or saw his face. But I think it’s because my mind pushed all of it to the back and locked it away. My mother was actually really worried when I started talking to her without any hatred in my voice. Sure, it was emotionless half of the time but it was better than the terrible things I was saying to her before. She started walking on eggshells around me. My parents came home less often in order to avoid me. My mother couldn’t stand not understanding what was going on with me. She put me in therapy and was worried that something was wrong with me mentally. It was if I suddenly forgot about everything and she wondered if trauma finally got to me. She became a bit more controlling, not knowing if I was moving on with my life or planning her downfall. She couldn’t take any chances so she took the reigns of the family.”

He was planning her downfall for a while but that’s a different story. Maybe he should start planning that again after all this that just happened.

“I slowly got over the nightmares and overwhelming hatred with the help of Jeno. He was there every step of the way. He was there one night and overheard that it was all my mother’s doing and it finally felt like I had someone who could really understand me. He was a good actor and stayed polite with my mother despite hating her too. I showed enough hatred for the both of us anyway. When I was finally sent home, he was there every night because I had nightmares of my injury. I would wake up in excruciating pain and he would do everything he could to help me. If it wasn’t for him, I would have done something extreme just to ruin my mother and probably end up hurting myself worse. But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t bitter the entire time during and after it I was extremely bitter, so much so it was poisonous to me.”

There’s no amount of words he could use to fully express how thankful he is for Jeno being there for him the entire time. He knows he would have been completely reckless or insane if it wasn’t for Jeno constantly bringing him back to reality. Without Jeno, he would have been a wreck. Or worse.

“When I saw and remembered Choi after all that time, I lost it. I had all of those memories I suppressed rush back to me. I had nightmares every time I fell asleep from the day I saw him after the crash until the day he died. I was losing a grip on reality and I felt haunted all over again. I was afraid that I was going to end up back in the hospital again because he was back. I thought my mother was going to hand me over to him again. I was terrified. I kept Jeno up every night and day with my screaming and crying. I was hurting.”

It felt like he was back during the time he had his injury. It felt like he never grew past that age and that he was only minutes away from going back to the hospital. If it wasn’t for their reputation, his mother would have put him in a mental hospital after everything. When Choi returned, he himself felt like he belonged in one.

“My mother knew I’d react badly at his return, that’s why she and my father appeared so often during his visit. It was his idea for me to be a part of the crew in charge of hyung’s recovery. If the teen son of the Na’s can take charge in a recovery then there’s no family better than them. I was just a pawn in their game again but this time someone else was in that hospital bed instead of me. My mother, though, wanted to keep a close eye on me just in case I started planning her downfall again. She wanted to keep me in her control and make sure I behaved well. She was afraid of my sanity and still is. She knows she ruined me but is too prideful to actually blame herself.”

One day it’s going to come back and bite her though. What she did to him is going to ruin her and he’s going to watch and laugh.

“She wasn’t expecting the client she gave up so much for to drink himself to death though. You should have seen her face when she went over the autopsy herself; it was priceless. It was even better when she found out that he suffered as he died. Whether his liver gave out first or his heart, they don’t know but they do know it was painful. I hope he suffered as much as I did.”

A half smile touches his lips and he lets out a breathy chuckle, still staring at the tombstone.

“I hope you suffered, you asshole. I hope your death was extremely painful and you thought of me as you went down. I went years of therapy, both physical and mental, because of you. I suffered nightmares because of you. You’ll never see the light of day again and I hope that your final glimpses of it were terrible. I hope you felt all of my pain,” he says with an almost crazed sound to his voice.

Jeno steps forward this time and hugs Jaemin from behind.

“It’s time to go now Jaemin. You’re brave for sharing your story; I’m so proud of you. Now let’s go home and help you heal fully this time. All of us, not just me,” he says.

Jaemin hears as the others step forward, closer to him. He feels his eyes begin to water again but Jeno is holding his arms down.

“I’m broken, Nono. He broke me and my mother sat there and helped him. It hurts,” he says, his voice cracking, along with his composed demeanor, as a tear rolls down his face.

Mark and Jisung are the ones to approach him next, putting a comforting hand on his shoulders.

“We’re here for you hyung, all of us, we’re here,” Jisung says.

More tears fall down Jaemin’s face and he doesn’t even try to stop it this time.

“I thought I was fixed but I’m not. It took only seeing him one time for the wall I built to forget about what happened to shatter. I’m so tired,” he cries softly.

It’s the first time, since his injury actually, that he actually took the emotions and cried. He’s cried because he was angry or afraid, he’s shouted his lungs out in hatred, and he’s ignored it all completely. But this is the first time he accepted the feelings and just cried from the pain of it all.

Donghyuck, Renjun, and Chenle come closer as well to give Jaemin their support. Renjun and Chenle take his hands and hold it tightly. Donghyuck stands in front of him, finally taking away his sight of the tombstone and places a gentle hand on the side of his face. 

“It’s okay to cry, Nana. You have to fully grieve and accept your emotions before you can really heal,” Donghyuck says.

So cry he does. 

Jaemin cries because he felt betrayed by his mother. He cries because he was living in fear of one man. He cries because he was so bitter. He cries because he lied to his friends for so long. He cries for so many reasons but most importantly he cries because he wants to and because it feels good.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he says.

“You have nothing to apologize for. We’re here for you no matter what. Remember, DREAM isn’t just some team; DREAM is a family. It’s our family.  _ You’re _ our family. So screw your mom for what she did to you. Screw your father for going along with it after he found out. Screw our parents for also trying to kiss ass to that monster of a man. You don’t need them. We don’t need them. We have each other and that’s all that matters. If you’re broken then we’re going to help you rebuild yourself. That’s what you did when I was broken remember. Now it’s my turn to help you,” Mark says.

Jaemin cries but for the first time in a while, he feels like he has his family with him.

No matter what happens—what jobs they do, what history pops up, what event happens—no matter what, they’re going to be a family and they’ll always be there for each other.

DREAM doesn’t only just prove themselves better than their parents at illegal activities. They prove that they’re better in showing love and being loyal.

They may be like their parents in more ways than they like to accept but they will always be better than them in the one thing that matters most.

Family.


	8. ...A family remains

**Seven years later**

“NA JAEMIN! ZHONG CHENLE! PARK JISUNG!”

The three mentioned look at each other like children caught red-handed, knowing that they will not be getting out of this one easily.

“Maybe we can blame it on Hyuck to buy us some time?” Chenle suggests, cautiously looking toward the door that’s bound to fling open soon.

“And deal with his retaliation? No thanks,” Jaemin responds.

“We could say it was an accident?” Jisung offers.

“Were we planning on saying it was on purpose?!” Chenle asks incredulously.

They don’t get a chance to continue figuring out their game plan because the door is thrown open and in walks an upset Renjun.

“Injunnie! How was lunch with Sicheng hyung today?” Jaemin says, praying his smile can calm down the older a bit.

He has no such luck.

“Don’t Injunnie me. You brats broke my tech! How many times do I have to tell you guys not to touch until I say so?” Renjun says, glaring them down.

The three try not to cower under the glare. They’re in deep trouble if they can’t find a way to talk themselves out of this one.

“Well uh in our defense, it’s not only our fault,” Jisung pipes up.

“Oh really? And why do you say that?” Renjun says, raising an eyebrow and crossing his arms.

They look at each other, silently discussing who’s going to be the one to explain the story. They end up doing rock-paper-scissors directly in front of Renjun and if he wasn’t so upset, he would have found that funny.

Jaemin is the one to lose and Jisung and Chenle have no hesitation pushing him forward.

“Traitors,” he mumbles to them.

He gives Renjun another smile but the older isn’t having it.

“Okay so this is going to sound really stupid and I know we should be more careful at our age but Mark told us we had a meeting coming up soon because our parents are attempting to do business with us again and we were still upset from the last meeting when they tried to buy Taeyong hyung and Doyoung hyung off of us so we were going to crash their systems to mess with them but I was busy working on a new chemical and Hyuck startled us while we were in your room and it may have spilled on your tech,” he says in one long breath, twirling his thumbs throughout it.

Renjun sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose.

“So you mean to tell me that you went into my room with the intent to use my stuff without my permission while working on a corrosive chemical all because you wanted to mess with our parents again but you spilled it because Hyuck startled you. Is that everything? Did I get that correct?” He sums up.

“Wow, it sounds even worse when he says it like that,” Chenle mumbles.

Jaemin throws him a glare and he puts his hands up in defense, zipping his mouth closed. Jaemin turns back to face Renjun.

“Yeah, that’s pretty much it. We’re really sorry, we didn’t mean to be so careless. We’ll make it up to you,” Jaemin says.

Jisung and Chenle nod in agreement also saying their apologies.

“Yah, what am I going to do with you three. Fine, I won’t kill you but don’t think you’re off the hook. No coffee, no games, no spending, for all three of you for a week,” Renjun says.

Jaemin drops to his knees dramatically.

“Oh please just kill us instead. Don’t take away my coffee, anything but that,” he begs.

“Nope, that’s your punishment. I’m going to have Jeno hide the coffee beans, Hyuck keep the game system, and Mark take away you guys cards. Consider it as payment for my damaged tech and carpet,” Renjun says.

The three boys whine at their punishment. Chenle joins Jaemin on the floor and curls up into himself. Jisung faces the nearest wall and leans his head on it as he sulks.

“I knew you should have left that chemical in your room,” Chenle groans.

“Oh shut up, you’re the one who told me to hurry up because we needed it done by today,” Jaemin responds with a pout.

Renjun rolls his eyes at their drama but lets it happen anyway. No matter how old they get, some things never change.

“Are you done punishing them? We still have a meeting to be at.”

Jeno peeks his head into Jaemin’s office, looking at Renjun and ignoring the sight of Jaemin on the floor, Chenle curled into himself, and Jisung with his head against the wall.

“Yeah I’m finished. Make sure we get home before them or else they may try to hide their stuff,” Renjun says.

“Copy that,” Jeno responds.

“We aren’t loved by anyone other than our hyungs,” Chenle says.

Jaemin and Jisung make groaning sounds in agreement.

“We are your hyungs now get up. We have that meeting and I’m willing to bet my office that our parents are going to try to pull some crap on us,” Jeno says.

“Damn that’s a lot of confidence right there,” Jisung says.

But he, Chenle, and Jaemin get up anyway and fix themselves. Despite how childish and playful they are, they know when to be serious and mature. They are CEOs of the fastest rising company in South Korea right now after all.

After everything that has happened after the infamous Choi job, they all decided to really stick it to their parents. So the first thing they did was move out of the houses. They used the money they had, most of it from their work as DREAM and bought a house for all of them to live in together. It wasn’t hard since they had connections in real estate and had enough money combined to afford it.

Finally all living together, they moved on to their next step and that was to make a name for themselves. They no longer wanted to be the kids of well-off CEOs. They wanted their own identities so they made it themselves. With the help of their parents’ former secretaries and a few influential friends they met along the way, they were able to get their own company started.

At first, they didn’t know what they wanted to make their company specialize in. They were all good at different things and their areas of expertise were so similar to their parents. But they figured it out when they realized that the things they do aren’t really that different.

So they created an entertainment company.

Jisung’s dancing skills and history made him the perfect head for the department dealing strictly with dancers and idols. Donghyuck’s background in photography and videography along with Jeno’s history in the acting and modeling businesses helped create a smooth sailing department for acting, modeling, and shows involving the idols, models, and actors. Jeno’s history also helped with the creation of a wonderful makeup department. They have the best technology available thanks to Renjun’s genius and they have their own private health clinic thanks to Jaemin’s knowledge. Chenle’s knowledge in hosting and overall how to make people feel welcomed played a big role in what made people want to join and stay with them. And to top it all off, no one even dares to try to sue them because Mark and his team of lawyers are the best around.

They were well rounded, young, and new; everything the entertainment scene wanted and needed. Trainees, models, actors, lawyers, doctors, and technicians all flocked over to work at their company, especially after model Jung Jaehyun, musician Xiao Dejun—stage name Xiaojun—actor Wong Kunhang—screen name Hendery—and performer Liu YangYang joined under their label. Moon Taeil even opened up a small restaurant/cafe on the bottom of their company building. As a side note, Jeno was extremely happy to see how angry his mother was when Jaehyun joined his company so easily but always refused her. But in general, they gained popularity quickly and it didn’t take them long to make a big splash on the scene.

It was also a hit to their parents’ pride when their faithful secretaries plus Lucas and Jungwoo quit to work under their children’s company. They were actually the first to join and they all had much higher positions than the previous ones they had.

The boys’ company was just overall better than their parents’ individual ones. Sure, they’re nowhere near as popular or successful as their parents but give it a few more years and they will be even better than that. They know it and their parents know it. 

Hence why their parents schedule these meetings.

“You’d think they’d get the message that we don’t need their business by now,” Jaemin says.

“You know they’re just trying to find a way to have us as heirs so their businesses become what we’re known for,” Jeno responds.

The five of them walk out of the office and head to the meeting room where they know Mark and Donghyuck are already waiting.

“We’re literally not even in our thirties but we’re becoming one of the most popular entertainment companies here and they think they can top that? I’m so glad living with them for so many years only messed us up emotionally and not mentally,” Chenle says.

“Speak for yourself,” Jaemin says jokingly.

“I’ll rephrase that then since I forgot that Nana is crazy. I’m so glad we’re only messed up emotionally but still have our common sense and book smarts,” Chenle says with a smile.

They laugh at the comment together. As they got older, they became more able to joke about the stuff they went through as kids and teens. Yes, it still holds some negative feelings to it but for the most part, they just see it is what shaped them into becoming better people than their parents. Besides, they make great drinking stories at times.

They get to the meeting room only to find Donghyuck completely in Mark’s personal space as Mark tries to push him away.

“Get away from me, go smother someone else,” Mark says.

They walk in and take their seats, pretending not to notice Mark’s struggle.

“Glad to know it’s a regular day here. Our three youngest being dramatic, Injun trying to kill someone, and Hyuck being a nuisance,” Jeno says.

This gets Donghyuck to look up briefly from what he’s doing.

“Oh don’t worry, you’re next. Markie is just being mean and not letting me hug him,” Donghyuck says.

“You’re trying to put your lips on me and you’re hugging me for much longer than a few seconds. Go hug Jaemin, he needs it; Renjun took away his coffee rights for the week,” Mark says.

Donghyuck turns to Jaemin with a fake pity look.

“Oh you poor thing, he’s trying to save your stomach,” he says.

Jaemin flips him off in response.

“Uh, rude. And how did you know he took away my coffee?” Jaemin says.

“Jeno heard him upset with you guys and he texted me about it. I’m apparently supposed to take away your cards?” Mark says.

The three who were punished turn and give Jeno a deadpan look.

“Thanks Jeno,” Chenle, Jisung, and Jaemin say sarcastically in unison.

Jeno shrugs in response.

“Hey, I’m just the messenger. Should have never gone in Injun’s room,” he says.

“Best friend card: revoked,” Jaemin says.

“He says that now but he’ll be begging him to give him some coffee by tomorrow morning,” Donghyuck says, finally getting off of Mark and taking his seat.

Jaemin makes a threatening gesture to Donghyuck but the older just shrugs it off as usual.

“Alright, fight later. They’ll be here any minute now so straighten up. And remember after this we have work to do. You did finish the chemical even though you spilled it, right?” Mark says, directing the last part to Jaemin.

“Yeah it’s done. I lost sleep making it but what else is new?” Jaemin responds.

“Great, then we’re good. We’ll discuss it all later then,” Mark says.

They all nod, glad to know that after this meeting they at least have something fun to do.

Just because they grew up and became CEOs and what-have-you doesn’t mean they let go of their  _ other _ work. DREAM is very much still alive and better than ever now that they can do more. Besides, who else is going to ruin everyone else’s illegal practices? The cops? They worked hard legally to get where they’re at; they can’t have people trying to ruin them with dirty practices. And believe them when they say people have been trying to.

They only had ten minutes to themselves afterward before a knock on the door alerts them that it’s time to get started.

A secretary opens the door and politely greets them.

“Sirs, your twelve o’clock meeting has arrived,” he says.

“Thank you, you can let them in,” Renjun says.

The secretary bows in response and then lets in the seven pairs of adults in before leaving.

In a strictly business way, the boys stand up and respectfully bow to the elders in the room, though it’s really only for show.

“We’re glad you could make it,” Mark says.

“Yes, thank you for having us. It’s been so long since you’ve answered one our calls, we weren’t sure you’d make time for your dear parents, Minhyung,” Mark’s father says.

Mark keeps a professional face like he always does. Their parents love to try and pull the family card when they want something. It never has and never will work.

“My name is Mark and this is a group-runned company. The majority of us must be free in order to have a meeting like this,” he says.

He gestures to his friends and there is no way to describe the power that this half of the table holds. Seven friends but they’re all one family and not even their parents can disturb that. Everything they’ve built they’ve done together. They struggled together, fought together, cried together, and thrived together. Nothing is going to tear them apart.

“Now, shall we begin?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this story. I hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> Talk to me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/EVXinav)


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